The Beginning of the End
by poe1911
Summary: Xander gets a job offer he really can't turn down. Post season 7
1. The Beginning of the End

THE BEGINNING OF THE END

Xander glanced around himself quickly, taking in the situation. He was trapped. Not that this was a unique situation, the last fifteen years of his life being devoted to the fight against darkness had pretty well exhausted the possibility of anything unique. Sad to say this was the kind of situation that Xander had found himself in way too often. Accepting his fate, Xander's body dropped back into a relaxed pose. Seeing this, the oldest and most powerful of those surrounding him pounced.

"Mr. Harris, do I understand correctly that your doctoral thesis postulates a common progenitor for both the Persian and Hmong languages?"

Leaning a bit forward, and appearing more confident than he felt; Xander answered "that is correct Dr. Lindsey." His answer was met with muted chuckles and looks of incredulity from several of the people seated in front of him. As he watched them find amusement at his expense, his infamous temper took over. His eye, normally so warm and friendly became cold and dangerous, his entire demeanor hardened and somehow, without obvious change; he transformed from Alexander Harris, PhD candidate in ancient languages to Xander Harris, serious ass-kicker. The look alone silenced most of his detractors, and with the resulting quiet, he began a spirited defense of his research.

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His journey towards his degree had started in Africa. When he had agreed to go to the Dark Continent and find slayers, he really hadn't considered just how diverse a place it was. Everyone on the continent seemed to speak a different language and finding a guide and translator that didn't think you were insane wasn't the easiest thing in the world. So by necessity Xander started learning the languages needed to get by. Surprisingly he found learning easier than he had remembered in High School, and sooner than he would have believed he had a good command of French, Swahili and Arabic. He became more fluent as the year passed, and even picked up smatterings of other languages, like Bushman for example. He had discovered himself in Africa, the challenges of the life he lived there had tempered him, the way fire will temper steel. After a year he was poised, confident and very self assured; and he was happy. So of course that was when he was pulled out. Despite the work he had done, he was being replaced with someone the head watcher had considered 'more capable' and was politely informed that he would be going to Cleveland to help. He was never told exactly what he was supposed to help with, and Robin had not been told what the young man should be doing, other than not patrolling; so Xander's first few days on the new Hellmouth were awkward to say the least.

The delay in determining what he would be doing had at least given him a chance to talk to Faith and catch up on what had happened in the last year. Truthfully Faith had been the biggest shock of all; the former 'wild-child' was now responsible for guarding the Hellmouth, and training the new slayers. Both jobs she seemed to take very seriously.

Buffy was in Rome with Dawn; Dawn was in school and Buffy was sleeping with a dark mage known as 'the Immortal'. Xander just shook his head in disgust when he heard this. He figured they needed a sign for the senior slayer's bedroom door, the kind you find at amusement park rides, that would say "you must be this evil to ride the Buffy". Faith nearly laughed herself into a hemorrhage when he suggested that. Willow was still down in Brazil with Kennedy, studying magic. Although Xander believed that the only magic Willow had studied in the last year had to do with Kennedy's tongue stud. Giles was back in England doing what he could to re-organize the Watcher's Council. Of the potentials that had been at the collapse of Sunnydale, only Cho Ahn was still in Cleveland; and that was only because they couldn't get her back into China, at least not legally. Faith was still dating Robin, but the relationship seemed to be hitting a lot of potholes, at least from Xander's point of view.

He was back but no one seemed to know what to do with him; so in a typically Xander move, he created his own spot. He started out just getting to know the girls and trying to make Slayer HQ as much of a home as it could be. Forbidden from patrolling he helped out with the training, and even the research. And the research led him to school. After discovering his gift for languages in Africa, Xander decided that he needed to learn as many as he could so he would be more effective at researching the newest baddy and reading prophecies. He was surprised to discover that Cleveland State University had an excellent Ancient Languages program, and Xander had thrown himself into it whole heartedly, just like he did everything else. After five years, Xander received his Bachelor's degree in Greek, Latin, Egyptian and Babylonian. He hadn't thought past that point when his advisor had asked him about his plans for post-graduate work. Xander honestly admitted that he had no plans what-so-ever and was only learning to keep himself busy; but the thought wouldn't leave his head.

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At his graduation party, he asked his two best friends what they thought about him continuing his studies.

"Sure Xander" Dawn replied immediately "aside from giving you serious credibility to people who don't know you; it would also freak the hell out of my idiot sister and everyone else that thought you were too unfocused for college."

Dawn had come to Cleveland after she had finished school in Italy. A rather mean part of Xander thought that Buffy had ditched the younger Summers as soon as she was able just so she could fool around with the Immortal on a more frequent basis. Well for whatever reason, Dawn was at Cleveland State and going through the same program that Xander had just finished.

"Gotta side with Little D on this one" Faith chimed in "the best revenge is always makin people look stupid for underestimating you."

It never failed to surprise Xander that he and Faith were friends, let alone best friends. If someone had told him back in Sunnydale that he and the dark slayer would turn out this way, he would have laughed in their faces. Their friendship had started out slowly, there was a lot of awkwardness and baggage left over from Faith's two trips to Sunnydale, but eventually that was cleared out or cleared up and they had slowly built their friendship from there. Dawn coming over had accelerated the process some, until now when the three were nearly inseparable.

"So you both think it's a smart move" Xander asked the two.

"Yeah, but it's your call X" Faith replied "remember what we said about makin other people's decisions."

Xander smirked back, remembering the incident Faith was referring to but then another thought occurred "umm, before any decisions are finalized I've got something else to tell you guys".

Both girls immediately were paying attention to their friend from the Y side of the gene pool, his tone had told them that the news wasn't of the happiest. "What is it X" Faith asked, speaking for the both of them.

"Well the fact is I might not have time to take classes."

"What's going on Xander" Dawn asked in a severe tone.

"Robin's leaving in a month."

"Why . . . He's what . . ." both girls started speaking at once, but Xander held up his hand and they both stilled, but he could see the questions bubbling in their heads.

"Apparently Giles wants to groom him to take over as Head Watcher one day, so he's going to England."

"So who're they sendin' in to take his place" Faith asked. She was a bit worried; even though she and the watcher had broken up long ago, the two of them were mature enough to still work together and while Robbie might be a tight ass compared to some of the English types that had come through Slayer Central, he was real loose.

"No one" Xander said "they want me to take over".

"Giles wants you in charge" Dawn asked, surprise in her voice "and you said what"?

"I told him I'd do it on one condition."

"Which was" Faith asked.

"That my two best friends help me do it right" he said, finally raising his gaze from the table and looking at them with hope blazing in his eye.

For an instant Faith's mood turned nasty as she thought that Xander meant Willow and Buffy, but then she realized just who he had meant, and a feeling of near euphoria took over; someone she cared about had chosen her over Buffy. Masking how she felt with practiced ease; she turned to Dawn and asked "so what ya think Baby D, feel like abusing power and bustin' some demon ass."

Dawn scratched her head in mock thought "I'm not sure Faith, I suppose I could be persuaded to lend a hand now and again"; the girl's mask of indifference finally cracked and she looked at Xander with a smile that lit up her face "of course I'm in. Did you really think I might say no?"

Xander turned to Faith "and what about you, could you handle being under another Watcher?"

Faith gave a predatory smile "you know me X, I generally prefer being on top, but if you want to be all masterful and command me then what the hell, I'm in too."

Both Faith and Dawn nearly laughed themselves silly at the look on Xander's face as he processes Faith's double entendre; he knew that working with the dark slayer was never dull; he just wished she'd tone it down from time to time. Finally trusting himself to speak, Xander asked "so do you think I'd be able to handle this place and grad school as well?"

"No prob" and "absolutely" were shot back at him almost as soon as he finished the question. He glowed a bit at that, friends who thought he could be something other than a donut fetcher, it was a great feeling. "Thanks guys" he finally said, a hint of a tear in his eye. Then looking at his watch he said "since we have to start getting ready for Robin leaving, I'll be up early tomorrow and I need my beauty sleep." His two best friends in the world laughed and with a beautiful girl on each arm, Xander headed back to Slayer central.

And they had run Cleveland after Wood had left. In fact they were running it so well that it was becoming quite the headache for Giles; they slayers that rotated through didn't want to leave. He had to deal with these disgruntled slayers on such a regular basis that he was considering hiring a professional diplomat just to deal with this one problem. Xander and his two best friends were still running Cleveland on the night of his Thesis defense.

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SOMEWHERE ELSE

"It is nearly time."

"I know, he defends himself this evening."

"And the outcome?"

"Should be as we require."

"He is the best candidate we've ever had."

"True, but he hasn't taken the seat yet."

"I know, but I have hope."

"As do I my friend."

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Xander's defense of his thesis had been going on for over two hours when he was asked "exactly how is this possible Mr. Harris"?

Xander smiled to himself when he heard that question, by asking 'how' and not 'if', the professor had unwittingly admitted that he had proved his point. "I cannot say Doctor Phillips; however I do have a hypothesis as to the possible connection. If you had a tribe that existed in what became Persia, a tribe that was advanced but had some sort of physical distinction that kept them from intermixing with the general population. Their knowledge would have made them valuable, so the locals wouldn't have simply killed them but used them instead. The knowledge base of the local population would soon grow to the point where the smaller tribe was ceasing to be useful. The smaller tribe must have seen the writing on the wall and left, looking for a safe place. Going north was out, so they went the only direction that they could, east. They wouldn't have been able to go north of the Himalayas and they couldn't settle in India, the local population was already too numerous. So they kept going east until they found an unpopulated pocket of the ancient world, the center of the South-East Asian peninsula. Now this isolation would have caused dwindling numbers, I cannot imagine that there were many left when the ancestors of the Hmong found them. Like before, I would suppose they trade on their knowledge to avoid extermination before they simply faded away." He looked up to see that all seven members of the Ancient Languages were hanging on his every word.

As he fell silent, the spell was broken and the faculty shook their heads and looked at each other; finally Doctor Lindsey spoke "I believe that the faculty needs to fully discuss your dissertation Mr. Harris; you'll hear from us in a day or two at the most."

"Thank you all" Xander said, and gathering his materials, he headed for home.

When he got back to Slayer Central, he took the reports from the first two groups, but Cho-Ahn and two of the newbies were running late. He had just settled down in his office when there was a knock on his door. Thinking it was either Faith, Dawn or both he said "come in" without looking up. When he did look up from the report he was reading, who he found in his office were two men dressed in suits that were almost a hundred years out of date. Alarmed at how these two could have gotten past everyone but trying to hide it he simply asked "how can I help you gentlemen"?

"Mr. Harris, we represent Miskatonic University in Arkham Massachusetts, and we'd like to hire you."

"Huh" was all Xander could say.

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The two men sat down, and the older of the two continued "our University has always had an Arcane Studies department, however it is usually unoccupied."

"I can understand why" Xander said "I can't imagine there'd be a lot of interest in something like that."

"Can't you Mr. Harris" the younger man interjected "a Watcher such as yourself must know that there are more than slayers fighting the darkness and people like that would seek out such a program."

"Indeed" said the older man, taking back control of the conversation "the difficulty Mr. Harris isn't the amount of interest, but rather the shortage of suitable candidates for such a position."

Xander suddenly sat back in his chair "you're here to recruit me, aren't you".

"Quite correct Mr. Harris. You have the requisite knowledge of ancient languages, you have experience with various entities commonly referred to as demons, you have the research capabilities and knowledge of the relevant texts, and you have the restlessness of spirit that is also required."

"So assuming I'm interested, what are the particulars in terms of salary and such?"

"Before we discuss that Mr. Harris, there is one more test you must pass."

"And that is?"

The younger man opened a briefcase and pulled out a scroll "could you read that please."

Xander was instantly suspicious, so he pulled out a box that he had asked Willow to make for him; it had a nullification spell on it so that any charm or enchantment on an item was negated. Xander also remembered to put gloves on in case there was something mundane like poison on the scroll. Neither of the men said anything as they watched his preparations. He pulled the scroll out and glanced over it briefly, then realized that it wasn't written in a human language, but in D'voltray; a language that was kind of a demonic Latin. Most of the modern demonic languages were based on it. Now that he had his bearings, Xander oriented the scroll properly and scanned it again. "Now the title here says 'Slayer Prophecies' and the scroll is broken up into four parts, so I'd guess we're looking at four separate prophecies." He looked up to see the two men hanging on his every word. "By the way, how did you pick out this scroll?"

"These were all time stamped by someone who held the seat earlier, we brought the one that indicated the prophecies were most relevant to what is happening right now" the older one spoke.

"So neither of you can read this" Xander asked.

They both shook their heads 'no'.

"Weird" Xander said at the synchronized shaking, and then went back to the scroll. "Lets see, prophecy one" he said and started reading; _The Golden Slayer will die twice but the love of her White Knight will bring her back both times. If she strays from the mouth she will wither, for only when fighting evil is she whole._ He relayed what the prophecy said to the two men and then sat back in thought.

"Does it mean anything" the younger one asked.

"Yeah" Xander answered absently, his mind still on the prophecy "most importantly it tells us that this was originally from a human seer. Demonic prophecies are even more abstract than this; all 'blank verse and purple metaphor' as someone once said." Shaking his head to clear it from the first prophecy's message, he started to read again "let's see what number two has to say". _The fire tree shall burn, and the flame of its grief will consume the world. On the cliff of kings the fire will rage and the temple will rise and only love can quench its flames._ 'Damn" Xander thought 'someone knew chapter and verse of what was going to happen. I wonder if the Watcher's had copies of these.'

He looked at the two gentlemen again and asked "what the hell is this thing?"

The younger looked at the older, and after a brief nod he turned to Xander and said "it is one of the Pnankotic Manuscripts. A collection of wisdom and prophecy that is unique in the world."

"So these are at your University and nowhere else." At the older one's nod Xander continued "how is that possible, and why am I so important to you?"

The older sighed a bit but said "the University was unofficially founded about twenty years after the Pilgrims landed and formed the Bay Colony. No one knows how, or by whom. What is known is that when it was officially founded there was a provision that there be a chair for Arcane Studies and some rather rigorous requirements for the candidates who would sit in that chair. Over the years it has become harder to find suitable candidates; honestly we had despaired of ever finding another one considering how the world is so much more technological these days. Anyway, we have fifty years to fill the vacancy or the University must be dissolved, that is specific in the founding charter. The chair has been vacant for almost forty years as of now; we hope that you will end that. As to how all this is possible, the previous holders of that chair roamed the earth in search of such artifacts and scroll caches. To be honest we have warehouses filled with scrolls and such, but we've had very few people who could sort them, let alone read them."

"So I'm your best hope to keep the school around?"

Again they both nodded in unison.

Xander was about to turn back to the two remaining prophecies when the door burst open and Faith strode in. "Hey X, we just got a call from Steph; Cassie and Cho-Ahn are down at the hospital, they've been roughed up bad." As Xander was picking up the phone to deal with this new crisis, Faith noticed the two other people in the office. "Where the hell are you two from, an Undertaker's convention?"

They looked at each other for a moment; the younger one answered "we are here to discuss Mr. Harris' future employment."

"Huh, where at?"

"That is for Mr. Harris to say."

Just then the conversation was interrupted by Xander "gentlemen I'm sorry but I've got a situation that demands my immediate attention. If I could reply at a later time perhaps" he let the phrase hang there.

"Of course" the younger one replied "we will be in town for the rest of the week if necessary." He handed Xander a business card and said "please call this number at any time."

"Thanks" Xander replied "I'm already looking forward to continuing our discussion Mr. . ."

"Carter" the older one said, shaking his hand "Randolph Carter".

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Xander and Faith were doing the one thing they both hated most of all, waiting for news from a doctor. While patrolling, Cho-Ahn and two of the new slayers ran into a nest of Glaroch demons that no one knew about. They had started fighting with two when the rest of the nest had jumped into the fray. Stephanie, one of the newbies, had come out unscathed, but both Cassie and Cho-Ahn had taken quite a beating. Cho-Ahn would be OK with a day or twos rest, but Cassie was fighting for her life on the operating table right now. Xander was convinced that it was only the fact that she was a slayer had enabled her to survive this long. As they sat there reading month old magazines, Faith turned to Xander and asked "who were the two undertakers in your office X?"

"They were talking to me about a job."

"You'd leave us behind?"

"I'm not sure Faith, it is a tempting offer, and not just because of the money."

Faith sat there sulking for a moment then asked "so where were they from"?

"When you were growing up, did you ever hear of a town called Arkham"?

"Shit yes, it's where I was born. Apparently mom was living there when she got knocked up and had me there, we moved to Boston before I was two. Arkham, now there is one creepy place. It's not actively evil like the Hellmouth, but there is one really weird vibe about the place. Me and some buds spent a night there. I stayed in the room with one of the guys, working off some tension you know; but the other two were out walking around all night. Anyway when we found them in the morning they swore they'd been walking around lost for over a year, and their hair had gone dead white. We never found out what had really happened to them, and we never went back. So where in Arkham did they work?"

"Miskatonic University"

At this pronouncement Faith's eyes nearly bugged out of her head "you gotta be shitting me, they want you at the repository"?

"The Repository, any idea why they call it that?"

"It's always been called that, everyone always talked about how they had all these old books and artifacts there, but you had to be on the inside to see them. They were like always sending expeditions to the damdest places, and you should hear what some of the students said they brought back from those trips. Anyway it's supposed to be 'the repository of all knowledge', at least that's what's on their seal; so that's what everyone calls it."

"Interesting" was all Xander said, but he had a very thoughtful look on his face.

After about three minutes of waiting for something more Faith asked "so what did they have that would make you even consider taking em up on their offer."

"They showed me a scroll of prophecies written in a demonic language, but the prophecy was obviously from a human seer. The first two were about Buffy and Willow, and were damned detailed; if there are more of them and working there's the only way to get them, then that's where I need to be. They've got information that we need, and apparently I'm the only one that can get it."

"You said there were four prophecies but you only told me about two, what were the other two about?"

"Well one was definitely about you, it talked about how you would leave the path, but the 'wayward souled' would put you back on it."

"So there was a prophecy that said I'd go bad and Angel would straighten me out" Faith said with some anger "then why the hell didn't Giles know about it."

"My point exactly Faith. The only conclusion that makes sense is that they didn't. So if this place has slayer prophecies that the watchers don't know about, then we need to know what they know. And these guys want me in."

"So are you gonna leave?"

Xander thought for a second "I'm gonna talk to Giles tomorrow, but if I do leave, I'm gonna ask a friend or two to come with me; as my staff of course." This last bit was said with a comical level of pomposity.

Faith just flipped him off, but secretly she was overjoyed at the thought of being with Xander on an adventure like going to Miskatonic could be.

Any more thought was cut off when the doctor came out to tell them about Cassie.

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It had been four very long months since Miskatonic University had made its offer. Xander had accepted the next day, after talking to Giles and asking Faith and Dawn to come with him. They had both said yes, and Giles had agreed that they needed the information contained in the University. None of the slayer prophecies that Xander had read on the scroll were in any of the references that the Watchers had, and Giles was anxious to find out what others were there. The problem hadn't been the three of them getting ready to go, but rather training up their replacements. At Xander's insistence, they had re-called Buffy from Rome and pulled Willow and Kennedy out of Brazil; none of them had come willingly. And once they got there it was painfully obvious that they were woefully out of slaying trim. Getting them up to speed, and making sure that Buffy had the leadership skills necessary was taking longer than Xander had hoped, mostly because their egos kept getting in the way. But things were getting better, and Xander was looking forward to June first, when he started his new job. After all, he had grown up on the Hellmouth, how hard could this be?

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May 31, Miskatonic University; the office of the President.

Randolph Carter looked at the antique parchment that was lying on his desk and wondered for at least the thousandth time if he was doing the right thing. Ever since the offer had been made, he had been torn between his sense of duty and his sense of destiny; it was not an easy place to be. Carter glanced at the paper again, he had told the truth that night when he had said that he couldn't read the scrolls, he had not mentioned that some of them had been translated. It was only prudent that those prophecies that dealt directly with the University should be available to the head of the University, and so there was a small cache of papers in a very secure safe, and only the President had the combination. He looked again and wondered at what he had set in motion.

_At the end of days, the Cyclopean shall take up his seat at the Repository. Wielding the Key and the Watcher's Blade, he shall come into his own. The dwellers beneath shall look to the cyclopean and his loves as Judge and Jury and when needed, Executioner. He will become an advocate for those the world does not see as human; and through his work, alliances will be made. Great power shall come to him, but he will not be tempted; so in the end of all things he shall use power, but power shall not use him._

Idly, and somewhat irrationally, Carter wondered how good a professor Dr. Harris would turn out to be.

A/N H.P. Lovecraft is one of my favorite authors so I decided to try my hand at a Lovecraft flavored story. I'm not sure if I'll continue it past where it is right now, but I might. Please insert the usual disclaimers here because all I own is an old car and an older basset hound.

POE1911


	2. Settling In

SETTELING IN

SEPTEMBER 7

Xander walked into the lecture hall and suddenly there was quiet, it wigged him out a bit. He quickly stashed his briefcase and notes in order to hide his discomfort and when he looked up he smiled at the class. It was an eclectic mix of old and young, some who were obviously skeptical and some who reminded him of that poster on the X-Files 'I want to believe'. "Hello class, welcome to 'Mythology in the Modern Era'; I'm Professor Harris and I'll be teaching this class. There are a couple of other faces you should get used to seeing, my graduate assistant Miss Dawn Summers, and my research associate, Miss Faith; they should be able to answer any questions you might have if I'm not around. Now I feel that I should warn you before hand, this is not going to be an easy class, you will have to work and what's more you will have to have a truly open mind or you just won't make it here. Now I hope you all had fun summers because as of right now the fun is over." As Xander started his lecture Faith sat back and remembered the summer she had spent in the city of her birth.

JUNE 3

Faith watched as Xander turned the key in the locked door, she was holding her favorite knife just in case; the whole thing felt strange to her, like they were opening a tomb. She'd heard that the old guy 'Carter' had told X that the office had been locked since the last department head had died; since then no one had been in or out. Faith just hoped that the guy hadn't owned a cat. The lock finally gave way and the door opened, Faith was still on edge and the open door reminded her of all the crypts she'd seen in her life. Then Xander turned on the light and it was just a dusty office; an office with a couple of filing cabinets, an old chair and three envelopes on the desk. Xander stepped forward as Faith stayed on alert, her slayer senses were pinging mildly; the sound of his footsteps were muffled by the layer of dust in the room and sounded strange. Carefully he picked up the three envelopes, blew the dust off, looked at them and then just stood there with a stunned expression on his face.

"What is it" she'd asked, worried that the gig was over before it had even really started.

In reply Xander just showed them the front of the envelopes. Each of their names was on one of the envelopes along with the correct date. 'Very freaky' Faith had thought.

"So what should we do with them" Dawn asked in a shaky voice and looking at her envelope like it was a snake.

For an answer, Faith just tore hers open, pulled the letter out and started reading.

_Faith Michelle LeHane:_

_Welcome home little Raven ( just so you know, the raven is the Celtic totem for your birth month), you're going to have quite the experience here but after the Hellmouth you should be able to handle it. You are a slayer after all and great events seem to be your specialty. As to what you'll be doing here, primarily you are his guard both physically and emotionally. You will have to guard him from the beings that would seek to use him for their own ends, so be vigilant. And just so we are clear, you are not the second choice or runner up or anything, you are the only one that can do what needs to be done. So trust him and yourself and do the job;_

_Warmest Regards, _

_Dr. Abner Whatley_

Faith looked up and saw that the other two had followed her lead and were reading their notes. "Guard him" huh, well it was obvious who she would be guarding and she was cool with that, or at least the idea of physically guarding him, but emotionally; now there was some territory that scared the crap out of her. She was great with being Xander's friend, but the notion that she might be more than that was something that she rarely thought about. She didn't want to loose her friendship with Xand, or piss off Pip, and that's the only outcome she could see if she tried to be anything more than Xander's friend. Well, she'd just focus on the physical guarding and being his friend and then see what happened from there.

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Seeing Faith tear into her letter, Dawn did the same.

_Miss Dawn Marie Summers_

_Hello there little Key, you know I'd never have imagined being able to address a universal force by name, but life always does throw you surprises, especially here. First let's get the bad news out of the way; He isn't the love of your life. Sorry to have to drop that on you but it's the truth. You two are destined to only be friends, extraordinary friends, but just friends. The good news is that you already know your destined love, and you'll be seeing him again soon. Now, as to what you're doing here, you're the anchor for the two of them, you and your love to come. Like what he did for your sister back in Sunnydale, that is what you are needed to be; their ties to humanity, a link and reminder of why they do what they do. All of you will be dealing with some forces that are currently beyond your comprehension but through it all you will remain essentially yourself, don't loose that. Trust them, trust them both and keep them grounded;_

_Warmest Regards,_

_Dr. Abner Whatley_

Dawn was stunned, she and Xander would never be together as a couple; that news in itself was almost too much to take in. That he would end up with Faith as the letter implied was just icing on the cake as far as she was concerned. Dawn looked up and saw the same stunned look on Faith's face that she knew was on her own; so it wasn't just her that was getting her reality rocked. That was comforting. As far as what the letter said about what she needed to do, well she could remember talking to Xander a lot about what he did for Buffy and Willow when they were the ones getting super-powers so it was a job that she could handle; and hey, they were her friends so it was something she would handle.

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Although he didn't know it, Xander's letter was much simpler; it only said _"Claim the Chair and all will be known" _and was accompanied by a couple of keys. One was identified as belonging to the file cabinets and the other was labeled 'Storage'. He looked up and saw that both Dawn and Faith both had very thoughtful looks on their faces, so he left them to their thoughts and opened the file cabinets. Other than some incidental papers, the only useful information there was a map of the storage area and a couple of books that Giles would have drooled over. As he finished up he looked back again. Both girls still had that stunned bunny look on their faces, so Xander decided that this was enough for today and suggested lunch, to be followed by getting their apartments in order. Neither girl argued with this so Xander just kept his mouth shut, quitting while he was ahead.

SEPTEMBER 7

"What we are going to do in this class is examine all of the creatures of folklore and search for the nuggets of truth at the root of each one and when we do this we will try to ascertain if these 'tales' have any relevance for today. So, questions?"

"Yes Miss Benson" he pointed to a young brunette that had her hand up.

"Are we going to be forced to believe this stuff?"

"No you are not. I'm not going to look at my grade book and say 'Miss Benson doesn't believe that Zombies exist' and knock your grade down. What will happen is that evidence will be presented, and you will be allowed to make up your own minds as to its veracity." After that answer the questions came fast and furious, but Xander answered everything adequately as far as the students were concerned. "OK, one last question Mr. Turner."

"How did you loose your eye" the young man asked.

"Well the answer depends on the level of friendship I have with the asker and whether or not I think you'll believe the truth, so for now I'll stick with 'I was running with scissors'." At that answer the bell rang, drowning out the student's laughter. Once the hall cleared Xander looked at his two friends "so how did that go"?

Faith and Dawn shared a look, then turned back to their friend "is it too late for us to sign up" Dawn asked with a smirk.

"So it went well?"

"Shit X, if they had crap like this and a teacher like you I'd have stuck with school; you did great."

"Thanks Faith, you too Dawn; well I got a couple of hours and then it's 'Esoteric Literature'."

"So you gonna bring out the Book."

"Absolutely not, that thing scares the hell out of me, and I already know a lot of what's in there, no that damned thing is for emergencies only". With his vehement answer closing the question, not to mention leaving his two friends a little shocked; Xander thought back to finding the book.

JUNE 10

"Hey X, what ya think of this cool chair" Faith's voice had rung through-out the warehouse they were in. Xander had actually been pretty speechless the whole time. They'd been exploring and cataloging things for almost a week and it still felt like they'd just scratched the surface. When he saw the object that Faith was indicating he did a classic double take. It wasn't a chair; it was a freaking throne, carved out of some weird black stone that looked like coal with odd runes and creatures covering the entire piece. What was freaky though was when anyone tried to touch it, they couldn't; it was like their hands just skittered over the surface, almost touching but never managing to make contact. But when they used a couple of wooden poles to try and pick it up, the poles touched the chair easily enough, but flesh simply could not. Even though it was unusable because you couldn't sit in it, Xander thought that it was too cool to just be sitting out here so he decided to take it back and put in the corner of his office. He got one end of a pole on the same side of the chair as Dawn. The younger Summers had her own pole and Faith was on the other side of the chair with the ends of both poles in her hands. Xander figured that between slayer strength and the two regulars they should be able to lift the thing, but it refused to budge. Further testing showed that they couldn't slide it, tip it or knock the thing over, it simply refused to move. Faith was in the process of getting very angry when the three heard a voice "Dr. Harris, are you in here"?

"Back here Dr. Prescott" Xander answered and soon a rather distinguished older man approached them. "Ladies, this is Dr. Prescott of the History department and a good colleague of mine, Dr. Prescott this is Ms. Summers my Graduate Assistant and Ms. Faith my Research Associate."

"How do you do" the man answered with a very polite bow, and received two nods in return. He turned to Xander "found some interesting trinkets back here no doubt."

"Well I don't know if 'trinkets' is exactly the word I'd use, but I did run across some scrolls from the Alexandria Library that you'd probably be interested in" Xander replied; a wolfish smile coming to his face at the expression on the other man's face.

"You're joking"

"No I'm quite serious, they were clearly marked, I even believe that one of them was written by Euclid so you might be fighting that one out with the Math department, but I could be wrong, my Ancient Greek isn't as sharp as it should be."

"Then why are we standing here if something like that is in the building."

"Well I'm just trying to figure out what's up with my chair. Xander went to try and grab the back so Dr. Prescott would see the 'no touchy' effect, but much to his surprise his hand came in contact with the chair. When it did it felt as though he'd just grabbed onto a live power line, but without the whole certain death thing. It was weird, somehow he knew he wasn't in danger, and then they hit him; memories. Lifetime's worth of memories, stretching back and back and back. They came flooding into his mind until his brain just couldn't handle the input and he blacked out.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OFFICE OF RANDOLPH CARTER (Same Time)

He was tackling some of the endless paperwork, preparing for the coming year and dealing with the influx of students that had come once it had been announced that there would be an Arcane Studies program again. His concentration was broken when he realized that the room was silent. It usually was quiet, but there had always been a light ticking sound coming from a clock-like device that sat on the mantle above a fireplace; it had been ticking since the death of Abner Whatley. No-one quite knew what would happen if it ticked off the entire fifty years, and Randolph was quite happy that he wouldn't find out. But then the silence was broken by a crackling sound, like the scum of ice over a mud puddle being broken; then the device simply fell apart, seeming to age years in a matter of seconds. Not knowing what else to do, he called his best friend and Dean of Students.

"Hello"

"Walter, he claimed the chair."

"Excellent news Carter."

"Yes, but then if fell apart."

"I beg your pardon?"

"The clock, it fell apart and crumbled; right in front of me."

There was only silence on the line.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

All over the world, seers and precognitives felt that something significant had just happened; that something fundamental had changed. And there were many migraines and many aspirin taken and many late nights spent trying to figure out what it all meant.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When he came too, the first thing he saw were two very worried faces looking down at him. "I should pass out more often, if this is what waking up is like."

Needless to say the joke earned him two slaps, one to the shoulder and one to the head. "Don't you ever scare me like that again Xander" Dawn said with a touch of hysteria in her voice "if something happened to you I'd have to go back and live with Buffy". Faith didn't say anything, but the concern was clear in here eyes "so what happened"?

"Well" Xander said, still flat on the warehouse floor "basically I know what that guy felt like on that Highlander TV show."

"Huh" from both ladies.

Shaking his head at their lack of cultural education Xander continued "I've had several lifetimes worth of memories just dumped into my head; specifically the memories of everyone that's ever sat in this chair." Xander suddenly realized that a third face was missing "where's Prescott"?

"When you passed out he started lookin' around at stuff, just killin time till you woke up; but he must have seen somethin that spooked him good cause he just started babbling and ran out like his ass was on fire."

"Thanks for that lovely mental image Faith."

"So how were you able to touch it" Dawn asked before Faith could reply.

"I claimed it" Xander replied "remember I said it was my chair. Once I claimed it, I could touch it, and once I touched it, instant memory dump."

"Cool, so does that mean you know all about the shit in here and we don't have to get dusty any more."

"Yes Faith, I know all about everything in here, and there are a couple of things I need to do, starting with this." He stood up and proceeded to stand and then touch certain carvings on the chair in what seemed like a random order. But then there was a click, and part of the back opened. Using his fingernails, Xander widened the crack and soon opened a hidden compartment. In it there was a book and a note. Ignoring the book for a second, Xander read the note. It was brief and cryptic "_only by flesh unwillingly given_"; but thanks to the memories that he had received, Xander knew what it meant. Only those that had lost something physical, literally a part of themselves, could touch the book, considering his eye, that wouldn't be a problem for him. When he explained it to Dawn and Faith, Dawn looked upset, but Faith brightened just a bit "cool, that means I can read the thing".

"What did you ever loose Faith, I thought slayer healing pretty much negated everything."

Faith pulled up her shirt to show her scar "it does, but it doesn't re-grow organs. When your sis stuck me, well some things were damaged and the Docs just removed em'."

"I'm so sorry Faith" Dawn said "I didn't know".

"Hey, not your fault Little D so don't let it bug ya. I'm not five by five with it still, but I'm OK."

They both turned to see Xander pulling out a large and rather battered looking book.

"What is it" Dawn asked, seeing Xander's stunned expression.

"The Necronomicon" Xander replied in a hoarse whisper.

"It's what" Dawn said, sure that her ears were playing tricks.

"You heard me."

"So what's the big deal with this thing?"

"Faith, it's supposed to be the most powerful and comprehensive book on magic and demonology in existence, but every copy was supposed to be destroyed."

"Well it looks like they missed one, so how powerful are we talking here, end the world type stuff?"

"More like cause all the stars to super-nova at once and end the universe type stuff" Xander answered quietly; he then looked at the two women "this has to remain secret, no-one can know about this or we'll be constantly fighting to keep thieves and assassins away, you guys understand?"

"Sure Xander" and "Whatever you say stud" were the replies he got. Then his face turned from serious to goofy and he said "OK then, lets see if it lives up to it's hype" and opened the cover.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

SEPTMEBER 10

Buffy was at her desk finishing up some paperwork, it seemed like she did more of this crap than slaying any more, but that was what came with being the head watcher. She noticed a calendar out of the corner of her eye and it prompted a thought that brought a grin to her face; Xander would have been teaching a couple of days now. Buffy knew that Snyder and the other deceased members of the Sunnydale High faculty must be spinning in their graves at the thought of Alexander Harris as a teacher. She also figured that if she told the still living members that they would immediately drop dead from the shock. Then she saw the last item she had to deal with and the smile left her face with fearsome rapidity. It was a nasty situation, idly she wondered how Xander would have handled it but she dismissed that thought, Xander was Xander and she was Buffy and she would handle this her way; to thine own self be true and all that. On the surface it wasn't that big a deal, just an altered duty roster, but the struggle it represented had been growing for some time and now she had to handle it, like it or not. And she most definitely did not. Unfortunately it was her call, there wasn't anyone to sluff this off on, after all she was the head Watcher on the Hellmouth, only Giles was above her and as much as she might want to, she couldn't stick him with this. It was funny, in a non-amusing way, that now she was seeing the slaying from the other side. 'There was no way I caused Giles this much trouble' she thought to herself, but just as quickly realized that she and her friends had probably caused much more. 'Why did I agree to this crazy suggestion again' she asked herself then she remembered that it was specifically to upset the 'tea and crumpets' crowd which was still refusing to go away, much like a foot fungus. Another factor had been the opportunity to get away from "the Immortal" who had been getting progressively stranger over the last couple of years to the point that Buffy couldn't remember what she'd seen in him in the first place.

She looked at the duty roster again, with this one exception; the Watching had been pretty smooth. Xander had left behind an excellent support staff and that had allowed Buffy a chance to ease into the job. There had still been a lot of calls to Giles for advice, but nothing of the frantic or panicked variety. But now there was this and she had to handle it like a watcher, not a slayer; and it was harder than she thought it would be. 'Might as well get it over with' she thought and called out "come in please".

With that her problem walked right into her office, actually sauntered might be a better way of putting it. In a word the problem was Kennedy. The current head slayer either ignored or altered Buffy's instructions constantly; even when Buffy took the time and effort to explain why she was doing what she was doing. Kennedy would nod, say she understood and would then proceed to do things the way she thought they should be done. Buffy's gaze hardened, it was going to end tonight.

"I see you altered the patrol schedule again."

"So"

"I wanted Patrice and Cassie to patrol together, I even explained to you why."

"But they hate each other."

"I know that, but sometimes you've got to work with people you can't stand. If we get in a pinch we won't be able to rely on these two because they've never worked together. This makes us all weaker, which is something else I explained to you."

"You did"

"So why did you change the damned thing?"

"Because I don't agree with you; I saw what kind of leader you were back in Sunnydale so I'm pretty much thinking you're wrong about most things."

Buffy sat back in her seat, trying to mask the anger she felt at the brunette's casual explanation. "So what would you suggest as a solution" Buffy finally managed to choke out.

Kennedy didn't seem to notice Buffy's anger, or if she did notice, she didn't care "well since they don't like each other, why force it. We've got plenty of places needing trained slayers, just pick whichever of the two is worse and send her somewhere."

"And if she has problems at the station you send her to?"

"Who cares, it isn't your problem anymore."

"I see your point" Buffy said looking at the girl and wondering if her wiring had always been that screwed up; then Buffy smiled, but it was a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "OK Ken, we'll try it your way" pulling a sheet of paper out of her desk she slid it across to the younger slayer "this transfers you to the Middle East Station, there you will take over as head slayer, you're expected in Riyadh in 48 hours."

"HUH" Kennedy said looking from the paper to Buffy and back.

"Well we weren't getting along so why force it, they need a new head slayer for the Middle East and you're the worse slayer between the two of us, so off you go."

"What"

"Oh, and good luck slaying in those all over robes you've got to wear over there, you know; traditional dress for a female."

Kennedy just sat there, gapping like a fish out of water. Taking advantage of Kennedy's stunned silence Buffy got up and stuck her head out of her office. Seeing Willow there she said "I just re-assigned Kennedy to Saudi Arabia Will, if you choose to go with her I'll understand." Then she just stood back and waited for the two explosions.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I took Buffy almost an hour to convince both of them that A) she wasn't joking and B) no amount of begging, or a resolve face was going to make her change her mind. It wasn't that she wanted to do it, but she had let Kennedy be her own judge, if the girl had said that they should help the two slayers work out their problems then that was exactly what would have happened. It would hurt to loose Willow, but Buffy believed that it was only temporary; sooner or later Kennedy was bound to grow up and learn to play nice with the other boys and girls. Once peace had descended on her Office, Buffy picked up the phone and called Giles. The head watcher had of course been informed of tonight's meeting; he just needed to know the outcome.

"Hello"

"Hi Giles"

"Hello Buffy, from the sound of your voice I would imagine that there are two people headed to Riyadh."

"Yeah" Buffy sighed. "It just seems like there was something else I could have done you know, maybe used it like shock probation or something."

"I know, but you went over your options quite thoroughly and I believe that the solution you came up with was more than fair, you allowed Kennedy to be her own impartial judge; actually it's rather poetic when you think about it."

"Really"

"Yes really, now I'll get the paperwork moving tomorrow and you should have a new Head Watcher by the end of the week."

"Thanks Giles"

"Are you absolutely certain that you want to go back to just being a slayer?"

"Yeah, as Xander would say, I've gotta go with my best pitch and what I'm best at is slaying. I'm not sorry for trying this out, and it has given me a new perspective on the whole thing, but a slayer is what I am Giles, as much as I might want to be something else I'm a slayer; end of story.

"As you wish, but if you ever do change your mind do not hesitate to let me know, now will you be alright in terms of manpower until the new watcher arrives?"

"Yeah, I'll make Cho-Ahn head slayer and I'll stay on as head watcher until the newbie gets here, then I'll go back to head with Cho-Ahn as my deputy, give her a bit more responsibility."

"An excellent idea" there was a pause "not that I don't enjoy our conversations but it is a trifle late over here and I do occasionally require sleep."

"I hear ya Giles, sleep well and thanks for your support."

"You're welcome Buffy and sleep well yourself."

With that he hung up the phone and Buffy did the same. She quickly called Cho-Ahn in to tell her about what was happening and the new position she'd be holding. Once the Chinese girl left Buffy just sat in her office, replaying the entire evening in her head. Giles might say she did the right thing, but she still wasn't sure. Looking at the clock and the phone she made a decision. She picked up the receiver and started dialing. The other line rang a couple of times, then was picked up "Hello".

"Dawn, it's me, you got a moment cause I kinda need to talk." There are times in your life when you just need family.


	3. New Faces and New Places

A/N This is very much a set up chapter for what's going to happen later, that doesn't mean it's drivel or fluff, just not as glarigly brilliant as the first two chapters (LOL). In all seriousness, I'm quite happy with how it turned out and with how the story is progressing. I must confess I've been overwhelmed by the huge positive response that the story has gotten and I want to thank all of you that have posted it as either a favorite or an alert, most especially I want to thank all of you who took the time to review it. Now, enough from me, on with the tale.

POE1911

NEW FACES AND NEW PLACES

OCTOBER 10

"So we can see that a small error in translation early on can lead to a radical change in the text and in what is widely accepted as truth many years down the line". Xander turned back to his 'Esoteric Literature' class, it still surprised him that he seemed to be a popular lecturer and that his students actually paid attention "by looking at the Dead Sea Scrolls, we see the passage clearly states that the Israelites fled Egypt across the 'Reed Sea'. Now the Reed Sea is an area at the north end of the Red Sea where the Jordan River flows in. It is an area that is swampy and treacherous and it would keep the chariot bound Egyptian army from being able to follow. It would be an obvious maneuver for someone like Moses that had a good knowledge of both the army's capabilities and the topography of the country. This shouldn't minimize his accomplishments as a leader, it just means that the really cool scene out of the 'Ten Commandments' isn't quite accurate." As his students chuckled at Xander's little joke, the bell rang ending the period. "Alright folks, remember there's a test next Wednesday, so get ready and we'll review during Monday's session."

The class left the auditorium, with just one or two stragglers that wanted to ask questions, probably about the grades they received on the paper's he had returned at the beginning of the hour. After they were dealt with Xander packed up his papers and headed back to his office. He stopped and looked at his door "Dr. Harris, Chair of Arcane Studies", Xander didn't know how long it would take until he stopped geeking out at seeing that, but he hoped it wouldn't be any time soon.

"How was class there Boss Man?"

"Fine Faith, a couple of students bitching about their paper grades, but they really didn't have much to stand on. Any answer from that archivist on the origins of the Order of Teraka?"

"Kinda"

"Go on"

"Well I tried calling him up but I got this Terakan asshole instead, and he starts with this threatening crap, you know 'we'll hunt you down, you'll never see us' that kinda stuff."

"So what happened?"

"I gave him our names and that we're with Miskatonic."

"And"

"The records should be here by Monday."

"Excellent, thanks Faith; I'm glad you handled that with such tact and diplomacy" Xander said, mentally filling in the parts of the conversation that Faith had left out.

Faith just glared and flipped Xander off.

"So" Xander said, sitting down at his desk "any plans for the weekend?"

Faith had been thinking about what her letter had said for some time now, she had even talked it over with Dawn; and realized that she had to get emotionally closer to Xander, the problem was she just wasn't sure how. In the past she just grabbed a guy's dick and asked if he wanted a roll, so actually dating someone was an experience that she'd never had. She had talked to Pip and even called B up, trying to figure out this whole dating crap; they'd had some good suggestions but it was uncharted territory for Faith and she just didn't feel comfortable. Closing her eyes and muttering a prayer she dove in and asked "well the Sox are in the playoffs and there's a game at Fenway Saturday night, what ya say, you and me?"

"You know, I've never been to a baseball game; not exactly my thing" then he looked over at Faith "however I do know that the school happens to have box seats on the third base side. How about I give Carter a call and see if there's room for two more?"

While it wasn't perfect, it wasn't 'NO' either; figuring she should take what she could get Faith said "sounds like a plan there stud, and if the Undertaker can't come through, let me know and I'll see if I can get a hold of a couple of old buds that should be able to hook us up."

Xander had to laugh at her nickname for the President of the University; actually he had to work to keep from calling him that to his face but he wasn't about to tell her to stop. Just then a brunette whirlwind came bursting into his office.

"Xander, you really need to talk to that Egypt guy before I hex him over the phone."

"What's the matter Dawn" Xander asked already knowing the answer. Dawn Summers might be a lot of things, but at the core she was Buffy's sister and like her sister, she didn't take corrections very well.

"That Jerkaholic keeps correcting my pronunciation. Can I please tell him we've got a phonetic translation of both high and low heiroglyphic alphabets so I can gloat a lot the next time I talk to him?"

"No, and you know why; we traced him back to the Air Force, and you know what happens when the government gets involved with the dark side of things."

"I know, but gloating would be a lot of fun."

"I know it would, but just think about how much better it'll be if those Goold"

"Goa'uld"

"Whatever, if those snakey aliens decide to invade and we show up with all that anti-snake technology. Now I don't know about you, but shocking the shit out of a bunch of government know it alls is pretty damn close to the top of my 'really fun things to do' list."

"But if they need it, why haven't ya given it to em X?"

"Because they could turn around and use it on other creatures, mutants, demons, weres, you name it and they could wipe it out. I don't trust the government that much so the stuff is a save the world only kind of option."

"And we'll know if we need it?"

"Yeah, we've got a couple of pipelines into that mountain of theirs, so we'll have some advanced warning if the fertilizer is about to hit the windmill.

"What pipelines" Dawn asked.

"A couple of half-demons that work in the maintenance areas and a nest of Vronta that live on the mountain."

"Aren't they those rock demons that are darned near indestructible but move slower than frozen molasses?"

"Yeah, but remember they hear through vibrations in the rock, so they know pretty much everything going on in there, we provide them a few luxuries, they alert us if anything's in the wind."

"Cool"

"I thought so, anyway I'm glad you're here Dawn."

"Why"

"Are you doing anything Saturday night?"

"Nope"

"Excellent" Xander said in an eerily exact imitation of Mr. Burns "I've got a guest lecturer coming in for my folklore class and I need someone to pick him up."

"And where will you be?"

"Faith and I will be at a Red Sox game, so neither of us can make it."

"You and Faith on a date?"

"Hey, I'm right here Pip."

"Sorry, it's just . . . . . . a little wiggy is all."

"It's just a baseball game" Faith shot back.

"No, it's a date and that's a huge step" she looked at both Xander and Faith "for both of you. Now back to this total stranger you're sticking me with."

"He's not a total stranger, you've met him before; and treat him nice, he might be a good addition to the department. Just stand there with a sign that says 'Miskatonic' and he'll find you."

"So who is this mysterious man from my past?"

"That's a secret, I just hope I can pirate the security feed so I can see your face."

"Xander, that's mean."

"Maybe, but if it was anyone else, you'd say it was fun."

Dawn thought for a moment "true" then she got back up "you both have fun Saturday, and I'll see you on Monday."

"We will, and thanks Pip" Faith replied as Dawn whisked herself out of the room.

"There's no way having that much energy is normal" Xander muttered.

"Maybe she got some slayerness after all" Faith said, then she looked at Xander as though she was thinking something over; finally she asked "do you have a problem being on a date with me?"

Xander looked up at his friend "of course not, it's just . . . . . ."

"Just what?"

"Well, honestly I'm kinda scared."

"Of me?"

"No, God no; of just the opposite in fact, of loosing you."

"What you talkin' bout X?"

"It's just that you and Dawn have been my best friends since Sunnydale, and as much as I love you both I don't want to screw that up and we can say it won't affect our friendship, but we both know the truth. And it's a big step risking one of the most precious things in my life."

Faith had to grin at his answer; Xander might be a bad-ass demon hunter, or a college professor, but in his heart he was still the guy that led with his heart that she had met all those years ago.

"You think that's funny" Xander said with a bit of heat.

"Naw X, I was just thinkin' about how little we change down where it counts; you're all bad and booked up but in your heart you're still the same sweet guy I met all those years ago. Listen, I know it's a risk, but what good thing in life isn't? I know that things might not work, and I know that if that happens our friendship will change but I'll still be your friend, and Pip's. The friendship will alter, but I'll stick with ya, that's a promise."

Xander looked at the ground, embarrassed at his momentary flash of anger "you're right Faith, things will change; but who knows, they may change for the better. We won't know till we try, and I for one am ready to try again; how about you?"

Now Faith looked embarrassed "I gotta tell ya X, this is uncharted territory for me, I've never been much for dating, and except for Woody, never much for the whole girlfriend gig; so I'm kinda afraid I'll wreck shit just cause I've never done anything like this before."

"I'm not worried" Xander said with a grin "after all our time together I think we know each other pretty well, so as long as we talk we'll be OK."

"I dunno about that" Faith said as she got up to leave "you have a tendency to get into some pretty deep shit with just your mouth."

Xander looked at the grinning slayer "smartass" he said then leaned forward and kissed her cheek "see you tomorrow". And his eyes followed her down the hall till he couldn't see her any more.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OCTOBER 11

It turned out that there was plenty of room in the Miskatonic box at Fenway. Xander had never been much of a sports fan so Faith had to explain a lot of what was happening and why it was significant. Xander looked over at his date and thought she was beautiful. She was wearing a white, long sleeved T-shirt, jeans and a baseball cap, but what really took the prize was the smile on her face, it wasn't her usual smirk or grin, but something simpler and genuine. He was having a great time as they watched the game and she regaled him with tales of her mis-spent childhood. Honestly neither of them wanted the night to end, but after the last out there was no reason to stay. They were driving back to Arkham in a prolonged but not uncomfortable silence when Faith spoke up "can I ask you a totally off the wall question?"

"Sure"

"What was the fourth prophecy on that scroll you read?"

"Huh" Xander said, sounding rather foolish.

"You told me there were four prophecies on that scroll, one about B, one about Red and one about me; but you've never said what the fourth one was, so what was it?"

Xander was silent for a moment, obviously thinking; finally he asked "are you sure you want to know?"

The question surprised her "sure, why wouldn't I?"

"Because it hasn't come to pass yet and it's about you, at least I'm pretty sure it's about you. So not to get all _Back to the Future_ on you, but are you sure you want to know about your future?"

Faith thought about that, honestly she was more of a believer in the 'Terminator' theory 'there is no fate but what we make', so she answered "yeah, I do."

"OK then, it said:

_In this time he will come, an offspring of the White and the Dark. He will steer the course that they have charted and all will defer to him in the new world._

"So how's that about me?"

"It's not specifically about you, it's about our son."

"WHAT?!?!?!? How the hell do you figure that?"

"Well, it was included in a scroll of slayer prophecies, and you are commonly referred to as what?"

"The Dark Slayer"

"And a lot of demons call me what?"

"The Slayer's White Knight; OK I get that, Dark and White."

"So according to this we're supposed to have a son and he'll finish the work that we start and have a huge amount of power."

There was silence for a moment; "Shit" was all Faith had to say.

"My thoughts exactly" Xander said.

"So how accurate are these things anyway, is this like Codex stuff or one of those where one in fifty is close to right."

"From what I can tell these things make the Codex sound vague. They are very precise chapter and verse about what is going to happen." He looked over at his friend "so what are you thinking?"

"No fate but what we make" Faith responded "we don't know the why's, or when's of this thing; so as far as I'm concerned it doesn't mean jack. Hey if something's gonna happen it's gonna happen, but it doesn't dictate what happens between me and you."

"You sure about that?"

"Yeah, I am"

"Cool, and thanks for asking me out tonight Faith, I had a really good time."

"No problem X" she answered with a blush; maybe she could handle this whole dating thing after all.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OCTOBER 11

She felt like an idiot just standing there with a sign that said Miskatonic on it, bit it was what she'd agreed to do, so she did it. Idly she wondered how Faith and Xander were doing on their date. That one hurt a bit, the idea that she and Xander would never be together like she'd hoped, but Faith was a good friend and Dawn figured that if she couldn't have Xander that Faith would be her next choice. She knew the girl would make him happy. She remembered the rest of her letter as well and wondered who it was that Abner had written about, someone from her past, it was a puzzler. Suddenly she was aware of a figure that had swerved and was now coming towards her, she couldn't see the face, but the hair was blue. As soon as she saw the hair she remembered that Xander's Folklore class was covering Lycanthropes now, and who better to have as a guest lecturer.

He walked up to her, his eyes widening when he realized who it was. "You here for me?"

"Could be" she replied "you here to lecture?"

"Yep"

"Xander and Faith have a date tonight, wanna get something to eat?"

"Cool" he said and they walked off together.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OCTOBER 13

"Hey there Oz man, thanks for doing a guest spot" Xander said as he shook the young man's hand.

"It was cool" the very zen werewolf replied.

"Well they're good kids" a pause "do you have some time, I've got a proposition for you."

"Sure" he said sitting down next to Dawn.

"Now I know you've got the whole Philosophy biz going over in Chicago, and I know you're on sabbatical, but I was wondering if you were interested in a side project."

"I'm listening"

Xander pulled out a loose leaf binder "I found this in my filing cabinet and it took me a while to figure out what it was". He opened it up and showed the two the pages inside; each page had a diagram made up of a bunch of lines, odd lines that moved in angles that seemed to hurt your eyes, and a one word caption. "If this is accurate, then somehow this confluence of lines in a room's corner creates some sort of portal, or point to point transportation system. Now most of these diagrams are labeled with the names of star systems, but a couple of them are locations here on earth. What I'd like for the two of you to do is determine if this actually works, and if it does, create a set of diagrams so that we can travel instantly to wherever on the planet we need to be."

"Why us?"

"Because you two are the smartest people I know, and if anyone can figure this out it's the pair of you."

"You're trying to recruit me, aren't you?"

"Heck yes, you'd be an invaluable addition to the department; but even if I wasn't I'd be asking for your help on this."

Oz looked at Dawn, eyebrow quirked; Dawn just looked back at him with a glowing smile. Turning to Xander he said "we're in".

"Good to hear it" Xander replied and they all went to work.

It was soon obvious that the system worked, however it only worked one way, so Xander had become used to getting calls from all over asking for transportation back to Arkham. When Dawn fell out of the top corner of his ceiling one day it became clear that a way back had finally been discovered and work speeded up. Sooner than he would have expected they had a series of diagrams that could be copied into a corner in minutes and could take you instantly to most anywhere in the world. As best Oz and Dawn could figure, the odd angles actually bent a person's perception, which in turn bent the quantum mechanical framework of the world creating a point to point traveling system. After all, as any veteran of the Hellmouth could tell you, perception can alter reality.

A couple other things came from all the research. One was that Faith became a lot more confident in her abilities. Despite having her BA in Anthropology, Faith had never felt comfortable with the academic side of her new job; but with Dawn either busy or gone (Faith thought it was funny as hell that Dawn had dropped right into the middle of an orgy in Beverly Hills) Faith had been forced to take a larger roll in lecturing and answering students questions and helping with research. To her surprise Faith found that she could handle these things, and actually handle them well. It had allowed Faith the confidence to start researching her own projects and helping Xander out even more than she had in the past.

Oz was another change. His presence had altered the group dynamic, for the better actually. Several times he had provided grounding and a clear head when it was needed. Honestly all three hoped he would stay on permanently after his sabbatical.

The final change was in Dawn. Working with Oz almost constantly for over a month had heightened her appreciation for the Philosopher/Guitarist, both as a scientist and a person. She loved his laid back nature; which was a huge contrast to her frantic flurry, and felt herself starting to fall seriously for him. He was smart and funny and cool under fire, in fact the only real problem she had was the fact that he was shorter than her. But he didn't seem to mind so she just let it go. She was even happier than she had been in Cleveland and that was saying a lot. When she talked to her sister it was becoming obvious, even to her that she was thinking Oz and long term at the same time.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OCTOBER 15

Buffy was furious. She was weaving her sword in a glittering web of death, and she was afraid it wouldn't be enough. She had been out patrolling with Patrice and Cassie and Alistair, the new Head Watcher, when it seemed like an entire tribe of Lokshoth demons fell on them. They were fighting in a triangle, backs to each other with the Watcher in the middle when it happened. Patrice had altered her position without reason or warning, thus giving the demons a free shot at Cassie's back and side; needless to say, they took it. The girl dropped unconscious with massive wounds to her side and right arm and a concussion. The Watcher eliminated the two demons with a sawed off shot gun that he had pulled from under his coat and was now standing guard over the fallen slayer, but she needed medical care and none of the three were free to give it to her right now. Finally due to some extraordinary efforts on Buffy's part and Alistair's excellent use of his shot gun there were only two demons left and he could start working on keeping Cassie alive.

Buffy finished her demon off and turned back to help Alistair; in an offhand way she noticed Patrice finish her demon off as well. "How is she?"

"Not good, she's already lost a lot of blood, here bind up those on the arm and I'll check her head."

"So another trip to the body and fender shop" Patrice noted casually.

Buffy finished binding up the arm wounds then stood in a fluid motion "yes, entirely thanks to you".

"How is this my fault?"

"Because you opened her side up without any warning, and you did it just to be a bitch."

"Like you can prove that."

"I don't have to, your actions prove it."

"So what are you gonna do, transfer me like you did Kennedy, send me to Timbuktu, put me behind a desk?"

"Ms. Summers, if you could help down here I'll deal with that" Alistair spoke, there was the sound of steel in his voice and Buffy immediately did what he asked, which would have really freaked anyone that had known her in the past. He stood up as Buffy knelt down and as they passed she whispered "are you sure".

"Trust me" he whispered back, and she did; trust him that is. She had ever since he'd arrived a month ago.

SEPTEMBER 17

"Miss Summer's, there's an Englishman here to see you, says he's the new Watcher.

"Thank you Stephanie, ask him to come in please." Buffy heard the man walk into her office and when she looked up she got quite a shock "you look just like . . . . . ."

"He was my cousin, I'm Alistair Wyndham-Price; I was always told that we rather looked like one another, I guess it's true."

"Yes it is; I wish I'd known your cousin better, but I was young and kind of full of myself at the time."

"So was he, or so I was led to believe. Actually he was rather a hero for me as I was growing up, I've tried to be like he was and carry on the family name as a Watcher."

"Have a seat" Buffy said as she gestured to the chairs in the room; as he did she continued "I was just reading what Giles had to say about you, well except for your name; very impressive.

"Thank you"

"No problem, and I see you were here with Xander for three months."

"Yes, so I am familiar with the territory."

"Cool, and I bet that if Xander had anything to do about it you're a pretty good shot."

He blushed "I try to avoid hitting my own foot, or anyone else's for that matter."

"Good to know, well unless you have any question, lets meet the girls."

OCTOBER 15

Since that time Alistair had proven himself to be an exceptional Watcher. He had Giles knowledge and Xander's empathy, combined with both men's ruthlessness when needed; he was as close to the perfect Watcher as Buffy had ever found. The fact that he was rather good looking didn't hurt and as she found herself spending more time around him, she came to appreciate all of his qualities. In point of fact she found herself falling rather precipitously for the Watcher, something that she'd have to deal with soon enough, one way or another. So when he asked if she trusted him; there was only one answer, she did, implicitly.

"Ms. Clarke, in times past if a slayer allowed her Watcher to be killed out of some fit of anger then the slayer was executed. That changed over time, but now that there are so many slayers, we can indeed revive that old custom." Saying this he pulled a silenced Glock out from under his coat and aimed it at the girl.

For her part, Patrice couldn't believe this was happening, so she didn't like the girl; she knew damned well the feeling was mutual. "You're gonna kill me?"

"You allowed a slayer to be hurt, possibly killed for no reason. You cannot be trusted to not do it again. Since you cannot be trusted, we cannot use you. Goodbye" his finger tightened on the trigger.

Patrice was trying to figure some way out of this and was coming up empty. She was too far away to go for the gun, and she couldn't out maneuver a bullet. She closed her eyes, waiting for the impact of the bullet when she heard "Mr. Wyndham-Price"

"Yes Ms. Summers"

"Perhaps this would be better carried out somewhere private?"

"Quite possibly."

"How about we worry about getting Cassie to the hospital, and then we can deal with Patrice."

"As you wish Ms. Summers" Alistair said with a sigh, and he lowered the pistol.

As he moved away, Buffy reached up and jerked the junior slayer down next to her. "You put pressure on these wounds until the ambulance gets here, and if anything happens to her I won't stop him the next time, understand?"

All the younger girl could do was nod her head. As soon as Buffy was sure everything was under control she stood up and walked over to where Alistair was watching for the ambulance. Buffy reached down and took his hand, when he looked down at the petite blond she mouthed "Thank you" and smiled.

He just smiled back. Buffy figured she was really gonna have to talk this one over with Dawn.


	4. Nightmares and Dreamscapes

A/N I just wanted to again thank everyone who has read, reviewed and listed this story as a favorite. I'm overwhelmed by the response, so thanks. Obviously I don't own HP Lovecraft or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I do however own an old Basset hound and a Subaru that is the world's only solid rust automobile.

NIGHTMARES AND DREAMSCAPES

NOVEMBER 20

Four figures made their way across what could charitably be called a 'wetlands'. Most people would call it a swamp and wonder what in the hell anyone would be doing in a place like that in the middle of the night.

"Tell me again why we're here X?"

"Well according to the sources I've found, there's a graveyard near here that contains an opening not unlike the hellmouth. And when you enter, there are cave paintings that talk about both the beginning and ending of the world."

"And you know this how?"

"Well the first time someone entered the support person was Randolph Carter."

"The Undertaker?"

"No Faith, his father; but from what he said and wrote down, we should be able to deal with whatever is down there."

"That's why you've got all this crap?"

"That's why."

"What the hell is all this Xander?"

"I'll tell ya in a second, let me find the door first then I'll fill you all in." After that he consulted a rather moldy bit of parchment and started off in a new direction; oblivious to the complaints that followed him. Very soon they came to the gates of a cemetery that looked like it was a thousand years old. The smell of the place was rot and decay, and some odd underlying smell; to Oz it almost smelled like the stones themselves were rotting.

"Why in the hell would you put a cemetery here" Faith asked "anyone buried here would be soup in a month."

"Maybe when it was started this area was dry" Dawn replied "and the swamp just kind of grew."

"This is it" Xander yelled, interrupting their discussion. He was standing in front of three large stones lying on the ground. The stones were huge, like you'd expect to find at Stonehenge and they were an oddish blue-grey color.

"Cool, so is it door number one, door number two or door number three" Dawn asked in her best 'Game Show Announcer' voice.

"Well according to the stories it varies, but from what the Undertaker's dad salvaged it looks like we open the middle one this time of year." They broke out the crow bars and jacks and with a little slayer power they had the center stone lifted. What they saw was a stairway leading down into the earth. It was exactly the kind of stairway you'd expect to find there, slimy, moldy and covered in some sort of ooze.

"Shit, these are my favorite boots X."

"Sorry Faith, send a bill to Carter when we get back."

"So what kind of crap can we expect to run into, I've gotta assume that there's something down there that doesn't want us to see what's on the walls?"

"Well that's where it gets freakier than normal. All Carter's pop was doing was listening; he said that the other guy just couldn't describe it, like it changed all the time. So I'm thinking its something like the blob, only with teeth and a lot smarter"

"So swords and guns are pretty useless."

"That's my guess on the matter."

"So what does that leave you?"

"Hot and cold" Oz answered.

"Yep, that and explosives."

"Damn X, what is it with you and blowing up shit."

"What can I say Faith, the Fourth of July was always my favorite holiday."

"Yeah, well it looks like we've got enough to orbit Arnold Schwarenegger."

"Most of this isn't explosives."

"Yeah, then what the hell is it?"

"Well, we've got two flame thrower's, one for me and one for up here; two liquid nitrogen sprayer's, one for you and one for up here and then some assorted grenades and satchel charges, all of which go with us."

Faith's eyes just kept getting larger and larger as Xander rattled off all the firepower they had "what the hell are you expecting down there?"

"The worst, that way I can't be unpleasantly surprised."

"I guess, so what are Pip and Wolfy supposed to do while we're strolling through hell and taking pictures?"

"Hopefully nothing, but they're gonna listen in and come running if we need help or close up the entrance if we're screwed."

This last bit sobered up Faith a lot and she fitted herself out without saying anything else. "Ready when you are" she said.

Silently Xander nodded, gave a wan smile to Oz and Dawn and headed down into the earth with Faith right behind him. Whether it was a trick of the light or some property of where they were, Xander and Faith were soon lost to the dark, so Dawn and Oz turned on the radio to follow their progress.

"_Jesus Christ what the hell is that smell, damn Harris, say something the next time ya crack one off like that; my mouth was open and everything."_

"_Nice try Faith, but can I just point out that you're in front of me, and the air is coming at our faces; so if anything __I __should be bitching about __you__ fouling the air."_

"_But it couldn't have been me."_

"_Why not?"_

"_Cause I'm a girl."_

"_So"_

"_Girls just don't do stuff like that."_

"She's right you know" Dawn mentioned to Oz "we don't do stuff like that".

Oz didn't answer, but he did raise his eyebrow skeptically at the young brunette.

"_WHAT, that's all you've got to say 'I'm a girl and girls don't fart'. That's your whole argument for how this disgusting damn smell couldn't come from you?"_

"_Yeah, ya buying it?"_

"_Not really, now clam up; it's getting lighter in here."_

For about a minute and an half all that could be heard was the sound of footsteps, the muted clank of the flamethrower and breathing. Then Xander started talking quietly _"OK we've got a large chamber with a lot of pillars, well lit and nothing else in sight. It looks like the writing and paintings are along the walls between the pillars. Faith, you start taking pictures and I'll keep watch._

For a few minutes all that was heard was quiet instructions and the clicking of the camera. Suddenly_ "Faith, we've got company."_

"_Really, where?"_

"_Two O'clock from where you're standing; Christ what is that thing?"_

"_Wait Xander, is that . . . . . that this is moving, what is it, huh, just what the hell is that?"_

"_Nothing I've ever read about or seen, but it's fast. Get ready to hose it if this doesn't work."_ Then there is the sound of the flamethrower, Xander cackling (sounding very Hyenaish) and a bellow that isn't really categorizable. It is something like a human's scream, the bellow of a wounded buffalo and the groaning of a tree that is coming down, only more so. _"Shit, it's stung but it isn't slowing down, hit it Faith. _This time there is the sound of the slayer's war cry, followed by the bellowing sound again.

"_Now that slowed it a little, but it doesn't seem to hurt it. What are we gonna do X, if we run that thing's got us for sure on those stairs."_

"_Working on it, can you buy me about 30 seconds?"_

"_I'll try, what you got in mind."_

"_Something to do with my specialty."_

"_Oh crap, well don't be too long."_

"_And don't take stupid chances."_ Then again the sound of the slayer's war cry rings out, as well as the bellow, but the bellow sounds closer and closer.

"_Thirty seconds are up X, what you got for it. Shit is that your fuel tank, and it's leaking. Please tell me you're not thinking what I know you're thinking."_

"_Fine I won't tell you, now dump that damn tank and get going."_

"_I go when you go Harris."_

There's a lot of muttering with the word stubborn being repeated more than once, then _"bombs away, OK Faith, make tracks." _There is the sound of running feet, and another sound, like slithering in the background, but it is getting louder. Then, an explosion, and a bellow that sounds a great deal more like something in pain rather than something that is just pissed off.

Dawn and Oz felt the ground shake, saw numerous bubbles rise in the swamp around them, heard the surroundings go quiet.

"_Think ya killed it?"_

"_Wanna go back and see?"_

"_Fuck no; I've seen all of it I ever want to."_

"_Right there with ya babe."_ Then it was just the sound of running feet.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Get ready to knock out the supports" Dawn heard from below. Then, suddenly, as if they were just conjured there; Faith and Xander were outside the tomb or whatever it was, breathing heavily. She and Oz jumped into action and with a couple of well placed hits, knocked the supports out and watched as the door (for lack of a better term) closed with a ponderous finality. As it closed the ground seemed to bulge a bit, but soon there was only silence and four figures in the moonlight

Dawn walked up to Xander, who was bent over, hands on his knees; trying to catch his breath "what was that?"

"No idea Dawnie, I've never seen anything like that in either Giles books or the University's. We had some sort of description from what Carter's father left, but it was far short of the reality."

"Can you describe it?"

"No, I really don't think I can, it was evil, and smart and fluid and changing and . . . . . . ." his voice drifted off and Xander just stood there, eyes glassy.

"Here Pip, I managed to snag a picture with the digital I was carrying as a backup." Dawn reached out and absently took the camera that Faith was offering, her eyes still on Xander. Truth be told she was a little freaked out at how bad he was. Then she looked at the picture.

Dawn Summers could speak 8 languages like a native, and read fifteen more but none of them possessed any adjectives that could describe what she was seeing. As she tried to focus on the image, her head started swimming, and soon she was adding the contents of her stomach to the surrounding swamp. "That is just obscene, in every sense of the word" she gasped out once she could again speak.

"Tell me about it, and that was the still version, you should've seen it moving."

"No thank you, this was bad enough" Dawn declared, waving the camera.

"Can I . . . ." Oz began

"NO" three voices answered back.

"Then we probably ought to be getting back he suggested.

The four of them piled back into their rented SUV and started back towards the hotel they were staying at. Oz took it upon himself to drive; the other's seemed to out of it to be trusted. He considered the three of them, friends that had known each other for years, and yet they seemed to have no trouble letting him into the circle of their friendship. They trusted him to control his other half 'even under extreme circumstances' he thought as the light of the full moon poured in through the windshield. He had found something with them, something that he hadn't even known he'd been missing. He had found a purpose. He resolved right then and there to take Xander up on his offer, to teach about what went bump in the night, and more importantly; to make sure that the world stayed spinning under their feet. With a small smile on his face he drove through the silent night.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

In the back, Xander was leaning against the door and feigning sleep. His adrenalin was bleeding off and he was finally reacting to what had happened below the graveyard that night. His mind refused to think about the monster, shying away from that train of thought like a skittish colt; instead it focused on the glimpses he'd had of the writing and the pictures on the wall. They had been monstrous, and utterly inhuman; appropriate considering that they had been put there long before humans had even been a species. The alien-ness of the things that he had learned seemed to grow in his head; soon he could feel his body start to tremble in an involuntary fear reaction. Xander tried to keep it under control, and he did; but just barely.

Faith was freaking out; quietly, but she was freaking out. There weren't many times in her life that she'd run into anything that she felt she couldn't kill one way or another; and that had comforted her. Yeah, she might not win the first time out, but she knew that if she had a bit of time she could figure out a way to beat anything she'd run across; until tonight. Faith figured that if she had a year to plan and the full support of an armored division then she might have a slight chance against what they'd run up against tonight. Her mind wouldn't or couldn't even focus on the thing, it just created a feeling in her mind of being both huge and invulnerable; and this scared her. One of the things that had made becoming a slayer bearable for her was the notion that nothing could hurt her like the way she had been hurt early on in her life. But now she knew that there was at least one thing out there that could take everything she could throw at it and then blot her out of existence as easily as swatting a fly. She leaned against Xander; she had been amazed at how calm he had been down in the cave. And his calm, business-like demeanor had enabled her to do some of the things she had done, like willingly facing that thing; she snuggled into his side. Then she felt it, his muscles were trembling, and not out of fatigue but fear; she could tell the difference. It occurred to her that he had been just as terrified down there as she had been, but he hadn't let it affect him until later; in the mean time he had trusted her to buy him some time while he worked out a way for them to get away. In effect Xander had trusted her to not just leave him there and run, saving herself. Considering what they'd been up against, Faith thought that was probably the bravest thing she'd ever seen.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The shower was done and he was ready for bed, Xander just didn't know if he could sleep. Scratch that, he was pretty darned certain he wouldn't be able to sleep. He had remembered jumping when he had opened the door to his hotel room, the door swinging open on the dark and scared him more than he would willingly admit. He had subsequently turned on every light in the room and then locked the bathroom door before showering. With a grimace Xander realized that he was gonna be acting a bit freaky for some time to come. He was debating turning off some of the lights before trying to sleep when there was a knock at the door. He jumped again, and even gave a little yelp, well maybe a manly gasp; and went to the door. What he saw surprised him.

"Faith" he said, opening the door.

"Hey X, can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Sure" Xander replied, stepping back into the room with the usual Sunnydale invite. "So what's up?"

Faith didn't answer at first; her eyes were busy scanning the room and relaxing a little when she saw all of the lights on. Taking a step she turned and looked at him "I was wondering if I could sleep here tonight?"

Xander looked in her eyes, there was a need there, yes; but it was a different need than he'd seen there before. This was a need for comfort from something you couldn't quite deal with, and couldn't talk about. He knew the look well because it had been in his eye as he was drying off from his shower. He was also flattered, he had never seen Faith this openly vulnerable before, he doubted that many people had; but she trusted him enough to be like this. "Sure Faith, just hang on a sec so I can snag a pillow and a blanket and I'll take the couch."

He started to move, but she stopped him with a palm in the middle of his chest, she looked scared. "That's not exactly what I had in mind Xander."

Xander looked at his friend again, obviously she was more effected than he thought, he also took the time to notice what she had on; she was wearing an old pair of sweats and a Ramones T-shirt. Xander figured that if Faith had seduction on her mind she'd have worn something that showed a bit more skin. Relaxing a little he smiled at her, it was tired but genuine "sure Faith, I figure I could use a little company tonight as well."

His smile grew as she relaxed "you want me to turn out the lights?"

"Most of em" Faith replied, not taking her eyes off Xander "but could ya leave one or two on" her voice faded "you know".

"Yeah" Xander husked out "I know". Silently he put out most of the lights as she climbed into bed; he soon followed her. They felt a little awkward at first, but then they reached for each other at the same time and somehow that seemed to break the tension they were both feeling. With little snorts and sighs of contentment they snuggled with each other and slowly dropped off to sleep. It was not the most restful night that either one had ever had, but it was more than they had expected.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

NOVEMBER 26

Alistair Wyndham-Price wasn't a happy man. It was ironic, he realized, that the source of his current displeasure was a man he had barely known and who certainly didn't know that Alistair was back in the United States. That the man was also a legend in his profession simply added to the irony. Feelings, Alistair decided, rarely made sense. He sighed again as he watched the bustle of activity around him; slayers that would just glare sullenly when he asked them to do housework were now engaged in an orgy of cleaning without one word of protest. It just wasn't fair.

Before he had even arrived in Cleveland Alistair had realized that being the Watcher to follow Xander Harris wasn't going to be a walk in the park; the man had set the bar of expectations incredibly high. Still, Alistair had hopes. But after two months there were signs of only grudging acceptance from most of the people there. Fortunately that wasn't true of Buffy; however, the rest of the slayers seemed to regard him as some sort of interloper, and not someone who was in it for the long haul. Not to mention the fact that he still got the old "Xander wouldn't do it that way" at least twice a week; it was bloody annoying. It was as though he was in a constant state of comparison, and it felt like he was always coming out second best. Given all that, maybe it was only natural that he was less than thrilled with the fact that Alexander Harris and friends were coming to Cleveland House for Thanksgiving.

"Don't pout, it gives you wrinkles" said a voice at his elbow.

He turned and looked down at the golden hair of the Senior Slayer "I wasn't pouting."

"No you were brooding, which is worse" she held up a hand to forestall his protests "trust me, I know brooding. Now was it the usual 'they worship Xander but won't give me the time of day' reason?"

Alistair jumped as he heard this; he had thought his personal feelings in this matter had been well guarded. With her California Cheerleader ways it had been very easy to dismiss Buffy as an air-headed ditz, slowly he was learning that this was a cover, a false front she used to make people underestimate her; but he forgot from time to time. "Something like that."

"Well stop it, when you look like that it just makes the girls realize they're getting to you. Just be yourself and they'll come around. Oh, and none of that macho stuff when Xander shows up, like trying to break his hand with the handshake or anything like that."

"Why not, would you pummel me if I did?"

"Nope, wouldn't have to. If Xander didn't do it himself then Faith would."

"Are they together" he asked with some surprise. In the three months he had been at Cleveland house he had observed the great friendship that existed between Faith, Dawn and Xander. But he had believed that if any two of them would form a relationship beyond friendship it would have been Xander and Dawn.

"I'm not sure, but from what Dawn told me if they're not then they soon will be."

Suddenly concerned for the emotional stability of his charges he asked "how will that go over here, do you think? All of the girls seem to have a crush on him to one degree or another."

Buffy considered the question "it'll be OK, but only because it's Faith. If it was someone from outside then she'd be toast within five minutes, but they all know Faith, or more importantly, they're all scared of Faith."

"That I understand" Alistair said with a smile "when I was here I made a suggestion to Faith and she told me to shut up or I'd need a flashlight to find my testicles."

"Yep, that's Faith; the queen of subtlety."

"An excellent and succinct description Buffy, I'll make a watcher out of you yet" said a familiar voice.

The two looked up, one with a smile and one with a rather stony and formal expression; "Giles" Buffy exclaimed and wrapped her arms around her old Watcher in a bear hug.

"Yes, wonderful to see you as well Buffy, but if you don't take your arms from around me I cannot properly greet Alistair."

"Ooops, sorry Giles, it's just been so long and . . . ."

"I'll be sure to make time to catch up later, but for right now could I ask you to supervise the clean-up while Alistair shows me to my room."

"You're staying for a while?"

"At least a week."

"That is so great, see ya Giles" and with a final hug she was off.

"There are times that I wonder if she ever grew up" Giles observed to his young counterpart.

"Indeed" Alistair replied "I was just thinking something along those lines myself. About how you think you know her and then suddenly you see a facet that you never even suspected of existing" then shaking the older man's hand "it's good to see you Mr. Giles."

"Thank you Alistair" he replied and they began to move deeper into Cleveland House.

"Your room is this way" Alistair said over his shoulder "I trust it was a pleasant trip?"

"As pleasant as flying can be. You would think that I'd be used to it after all the time I've spent on an airplane, but I still can't stand it."

"Sorry to hear that; have you considered purchasing a jet? The council could afford it and at least that way you wouldn't be seated next to a sweaty fat person that always has to go to the bathroom."

"Yes, I've considered it on more than one occasion, but in my mind that smacks too much of the old council and their way of doing things. No, I shall just put up with the airlines and have the money spent in better ways."

They had arrived at one of the guest rooms and Alistair opened the door. "I trust you'll find everything satisfactory."

"Thank you Alistair, I'm sure I will" Giles said as he moved into the room. "Now, if you will be so kind as to shut the door, I'd like to speak to you in private."

"Certainly sir" the younger man replied with some nervousness evident in his voice.

Seeing this Giles gave a chuckle "nothing to be scared of Alistair, just an observation and a couple of questions. First off, I believe your family would be proud of how you've turned out, especially your father and Wesley."

"Thank you sir" Alistair said, blushing at the praise.

"So, how are you fitting in here?"

Alistair sighed, the flush feeling that the compliment had brought faded away like magic "it's slow going sir, every time I feel I've started to make progress something will happen to remind me that I'm still at square one."

Giles gave a rueful chuckle "yes, Xander's fan club can be quite the force, can it not." The chuckle turned to a full blown laugh at Alistair's look of incredulity "you would not believe the time I've had to spend dealing with Slayers who wanted him as their Watcher, or Slayers who wanted to be transferred because their Watcher didn't measure up to Xander. Tell me Alistair, you were here for three months; what is it that makes him so good?"

Alistair absent mindedly sat down as he contemplated the question. He had considered this many times, and wanted to get his thoughts in order. "Honestly I can't say sir. It seems as though he goes out of his way to ignore everything that being a Watcher is supposed to be about. He embraces the unorthodox rather than the traditional, he was a decent researcher while I was here but openly eschews magic and he is very open with the Slayers; explaining rather than ordering and bending over backwards to accommodate them."

"But what inspires such loyalty; is he giving up leadership for popularity?"

"No sir, he made some rather difficult and unpopular decisions while I was here."

"So you have hints but no conclusions?"

"That is correct sir."

"Then please allow me to enlighten you."

"You know what it is."

"I do, but I must confess it took several years and a chance observation by a psychiatrist to bring it all into focus; mostly because it is so simple. He loves them, each and every one; and everything he does is designed to make their lives as normal as possible given their circumstances. We were having a rather vigorous debate on patrolling and such when he told me 'they're girls that happen to be slayers, not slayers that happen to be girls'."

"I don't understand."

"Neither did I at first, but if you think about it, it becomes clear. He treats them as girls, not tools, not weapons, not as expendable assets; but as girls and they love him for it."

"So you're saying I should change the way I treat them."

"Possibly, but I do caution you, do not try to be Xander, there is only one of him; thank God, but you may want to incorporate some of the things he does into your dealings with the Slayers."

Alistair was silent for a moment, thinking about what he had been told, an oddly petulant look on his face.

"Was there something else" Giles asked.

"Well" Alistair started "I suppose that I'm uneasy being asked to emulate someone who walked away from his duty. If he was truly that good he'd still be a watcher now wouldn't he"?

Alistair had been unprepared for what had happened. One moment he was talking and Giles was sitting in his chair; the next he found himself being held against a wall and kindly Mr. Giles his boss was nowhere to be seen and Ripper (a character he had only heard of) was fixing him with an Arctic glare. "Alexander Harris is the finest Watcher I've ever known, regardless of my feelings for him as a friend. What he is doing now is even more important and he only undertook it with the greatest reluctance because it took him away from so many people that he loved. As I suggested, pay attention to him while he is here; and then if you have any questions about his dedication I would warn you to share them only with me because if you told anyone else I doubt you would walk away from that conversation. Do we understand one another?"

Alistair simply nodded and with that he was released. He sank down into a chair to think about what had just happened and what had been said; unfortunately he didn't have much time to think as the sound of feet pounding down the hallway broke in. This was followed by two quick raps on the door and then Buffy was poking her head in. "Guys, we've got a situation; the two witches say that something's coming right into the front hall." And with that, she disappeared, headed back the way she had come.

Giles just quirked his eyebrow at the younger Watcher and together they headed for the weapons cabinet."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

They were gathered in a semi-circle facing one corner of the entry hall. "Do we have any idea what to expect" Buffy asked.

"No" Melinda, the stronger of the Wiccas, answered "just that it's very powerful and it feels odd."

"Odd, how" Giles asked.

"Well, it doesn't really feel like magic, it's just odd, and powerful."

Just then the corner of the room started to glow, it wasn't bright but it was noticeable. The glow increased, but never got to the point where it was unbearable; then it winked out and left four figures standing in front of the assembled slayers and support people. There was silence until finally the tallest figure of the four spoke up "hey guys, what's the dire" he checked his watch "we're not late are we"?

Buffy spoke up "Xander you fuzz-brain, why didn't you say you'd be traveling by magic."

"Cause I didn't Buff, it's not magic it's science, well kinda. What's with the freakage, I said I'd be here at one, and its one" he looked around nervously "could you ask everyone to put their lethal implements away?"

"I told you they'd spazz out" Dawn said with a grin.

"You never said they could feel it coming" Xander said, sounding indignant.

I didn't know they could" Dawn replied "but I did tell you about the light in the corner didn't I"?

"Yeah you did Pip" Faith said as she fished out a five and handed it to the younger woman. Oz didn't say anything but he looked vaguely disappointed as he handed Dawn a five as well.

As this was going on, Xander eyed the room and finally said "well, isn't anyone happy to see me"? The resulting sound was deafening in the enclosed place and Xander soon found himself buried under some very excited young women.

Trying to hide the smidgen of jealousy that had the avalanche of girls had sparked; Faith sauntered over to Buffy, who was already talking animatedly to Dawn "what d'ya say B, do we want to save him or just clean up what they leave behind."

Buffy looked at the laughing pile "we should probably dig him out; if we don't he won't be able to carve the turkey."

The three young women laughed and proceeded to extract Xander from the pile of slayers. "Oh for God's sake" Buffy finally said to the protesting girls "he's gonna be here all day so he'll have time to catch up with all of you. And as Senior Slayer I claim first dibs" she delivered this with a superior grin and a cold look that said 'discussion is over'. "So Xander" she asked while leading him away "what's it like being a teacher"?

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Soon dinner was served and the conversation kept light, well light for slayers. That is to say that ambush tactics, weaponry, first aid and interesting kills were the subjects touched upon. But soon the dishes were cleared and the junior slayers were shooed away and the business portion of the evening started.

"Exactly how did you arrive here Xander" Giles asked.

"It was something that I found in the files my predecessor left. It's kind of like a Mandalla, but it doesn't draw on earth magic but rather is entirely physics based. Our best guess is that the lines somehow warp perception and create a point to point transport system. Now when we started most of them were for places on other planets, but with a lot of work from Oz and Dawn we were able to refine it so you could travel to any given point on the planet."

"How is that possible" Buffy asked.

"Again we're not entirely sure but you remember Marcie don't you; perception shapes reality. If you perceive space as being warped, then your perception could warp it."

Buffy turned to her sister and asked "so how did you and Oz figure out where these things would take you?"

"Well, we drew them and went."

"What, you just went through hoping you wouldn't end up in the middle of a shooting gallery or something like that" Buffy exclaimed, her voice rising the whole time.

"Don't freak out Buffy, we had worked out what we thought were the critical parameters and tried to aim for safe places. Sure it didn't always work that way, but it mostly did. Anyway we're both fine and as a result we've got a way of getting anywhere in the world instantly."

"So where have you been lately?"

"Florida"

"And what was so interesting down in Florida?"

The others sat back and watched the two sisters volley questions and answers back and forth. "This really creepy old graveyard in the middle of a swamp."

"What was in a place like that?"

Dawn turned to Xander who took up the story. "Giles, what would you say if I told you I had pictures of a series of frescos that told the complete and true story of the creation of the universe."

Giles, who had been cleaning his glasses, dropped them and stared gape mouthed at Xander. Next to him Alistair muttered "that sounds familiar, why does that sound familiar" to himself. Finally Giles found his voice "you were in the antechamber of Hastur?"

"I suppose" he answered over Alistair's gasp of surprise.

"What do you mean 'you suppose' do you mean to tell me you didn't know what you were getting into when you entered the place"?

"No Giles, we simply didn't know the name of the place. We had a description from the journal of the father of the current president of the University. So we took what I thought were appropriate measures and went in for a look."

"Who the heck is this Hasty guy you're talking about" Buffy wanted to know.

"Hastur is the name given to one of the old ones. Beings that supposedly existed before the universe was created; existing outside on some other plain then moving to this place once it was created?"

"Why" Faith asked.

"No one knows for sure" Giles replied "suffice it to say that a being of that power is insanely dangerous to approach."

"Then why go there" Buffy asked.

"Because a being that powerful has access to knowledge that we can only dream of; the place that Xander and Faith went to has the history of this planet written on the walls. And when I say that I mean the entire history from beginning to end. Supposedly there are other rooms, but no one has ever spoken of them as anything other than vague hints.

"Did you get a look at the frescos" Alistair asked, no longer able to hold back.

"About two thirds of them" Faith replied "then we had to high-tail it out of there because of some screwed up invulnerable monster."

"You met a guardian" Giles asked in wonder "what was it like"?

Both Xander and Faith were silent for a long time, then Xander spoke up "it was the kind of thing that the First would see in it's nightmares. I can't describe it any better than that."

"If it helps I took one look at Faith's picture of it and threw up" Dawn added; then she pulled a disk out of a folder. "We put everything on the disk, the guardian is the last picture, be sure and look on an empty stomach."

At that moment Buffy was tempted to twit her sister about Dawn's reaction to a simple picture, but then she noticed the haunted looks on both Xander and Faith's face and kept quiet. The meeting, such as it was, broke up after that with Xander and Faith stating that they were going for a walk to clear their heads; Oz, Giles and Alistair went to view what was on the disk, leaving Buffy and Dawn alone.

"Are they as together as they act" Buffy asked, indicating Xander and Faith.

"I think so" Dawn replied "this whole thing shook them both up pretty badly. I know they've spent every night since then sleeping together and even then sometimes I can hear them scream in the middle of the night; and it's not the good kind of screaming if you know what I mean. So I think they're getting to be all coupley, but both of them are so closed at times it's hard to tell."

"So do you like working at Miskatonic?"

"Yeah I do, I miss the slayage and everything but I made the right choice."

"Having Oz around doesn't hurt either, does it" Buffy asked with a knowing grin.

"No more than having a Watcher you're falling hard for" Dawn shot back with a grin of her own.


	5. Charge of the Very Light Brigade

A/N I'm very happy with how this story is proceeding. I'm not sure how long it will be between updates, but I'll do my best to keep it around two weeks. I'd like to thank everyone that has read, reviewed or marked this story as a favorite; I'm humbled by your commitment of time and effort to it. Please insert the usual disclaimer's here, and now on with the show.

THE CHARGE OF THE VERY LIGHT BRIGADE

January 15

Xander Harris regarded the two guests in his office and suppressed a sigh 'how did this always seem to happen to him' he wondered. Briefly he gave thanks to whatever Gods there were that Faith, Dawn and Oz were not here to witness this, or he'd never hear the end of it. Dawn and Oz were out "relaxing" after the last adventure they'd had and Faith was currently teaching his 'Unconventional Religions' class; he also suppressed the grin he felt at the notion of Faith teaching. Snapping himself out of his momentary reverie, Xander turned his attention back to his guests, his two female guests. His two female non-human guests, they were K'Pfastead Demons; Xander didn't know if they should be classified as humanoid or reptiloid but he did think they looked a lot like the Cardassians on Star Trek. 'How did I get to be Murphy's test case' he wondered, not for the first time, and then smiled at the two ladies.

It had started out innocently enough. The four of them had stopped at a bar, much like the Alibi Room back in Sunnydale, to get the news and have a drink. There had been a party going on in the back that they hadn't paid any attention to; till all the fighting started. It turned out that it was a wedding party, a wedding where all the participants weren't voluntary. It was probably a very common occurrence, in Medieval times; ugly but powerful prince falls in love with beautiful princess (in this case the 'prince' was the warlord of the Yuan Tunq tribe), the princess says 'no' so the prince decides she really meant 'yes', then comes the kidnapping and the shotgun wedding. In this case the princess had objected most strenuously and had laid out more than half of the warlord's body guard then she broke away and hid behind Xander and begged the four of them to protect her honor. They had all thought it was a set-up or a practical joke gone wrong until one of the remaining guards had tried to backhand Xander out of the way while the princess was pleading her case; that was his first and last mistake. Xander had ducked under the blow, pulled his .357 Python and put a blessed hollow point right through the guard's right eye. The bullet proceeded to exit the rear of the foolish beings head taking most of its brain with it. The fight after that was short, brutal and very one sided, ending when Faith snapped the warlord's neck. Now the princess was here with her mother to personally extend their thanks, a motive that Xander didn't believe for a moment.

"Majesty" he bowed then turned to the younger female "Highness, you honor me with your presence."

"No, it is we who are honored Alexander, after the service you have rendered us, we would be remiss in not thanking you formally."

"My friends and I only did what anyone else would have Majesty, thanks; while welcome, are un-needed gestures."

The Queen chuckled at this "monarchs thrive on un-needed gestures Alexander; in a way it is what reigning is all about."

Xander wanted to answer that, but just then the Princess stepped forward "I also offer my personal thanks for your timely intervention."

"Our help was hardly necessary" he replied "you were doing quite well on your own." He then gestured to the chairs "would you both care to be seated"?

Everyone sat down and got comfortable and then the Queen got down to business "Alexander, in addition to my thanks I also wanted to make you an offer."

"An offer Majesty?"

"Yes, if my daughter were pledged to someone, then these rather tiresome intrigues to win her hand would be at an end. I would very much like the someone she is pledged to to be you. You have proven yourself in battle and are respected in our world."

Xander couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was bad enough that demon girls seemed to be attracted to him, now he had demon moms setting him up with their daughters. He tried to think of a way out of this one without pissing off the two very attractive ladies that could rend him limb from limb. Finally he said "Majesty, as flattered as I am at your offer, I am hesitant to accept it. Were I to do so, I would open your people up to censure for mingling your royal line with human stock. Doing so would also embarrass the young men of yours and other tribes as well. There is also the fact that I am already pledged to another, I would not want to break faith with her. Not only would it be unfair to her, it would demonstrate my willingness to go back on my word, and you could never trust me after." Xander had considered why the demons would want him affiliated with their tribe and figured that it must be for security reasons, so he made an offer. "I do feel the need to make amends for refusing your remarkable offer so please let it be known that you, your daughter and your people are under the personal protection of Miskatonic in general and our department in particular." He decided to stop while he was ahead and looked hard at his visitors to see what their reaction was. The Princess looked disappointed while the Queen looked pleased.

"Your reputation for wisdom is well earned" she said "those are indeed crucial points. It is clear that no joining can take place; however recompense for your actions is still owed. I would offer you this" she pulled a leather looking gauntlet out from her robes. "It is a gauntlet of Galen. It is not known in the human world that Galen was a Strygthal and only studied the healing of humans because of his own races near invulnerability. He made several of these during his life; they will heal nearly any affliction, either natural or mystical. It is not painless and it utilizes the life force of who is being healed, so it is not without cost; however I believe you will find uses for it."

"Indeed Majesty" Xander said as he rose and bowed again; then took the offered gauntlet. "It is a remarkable gift, and I thank you most profoundly for it."

The two demonic royals stood as well "you are certainly welcome Alexander; unfortunately" here she glanced at the clock "we must leave. I do look forward to speaking to you again."

"You are always welcome Majesty, as are you Highness" he nodded to the princess.

"Thank you" the queen said, turning towards the door "come daughter."

The princess turned and then turned back to Xander "I have no reward to give you, so I shall pay my debt in information. The Slayer Prime's former paramour was not happy with how things were left and is seeking to make his displeasure known to her."

Xander's eye widened at what he was hearing, 'Morty' was gonna be gunning for Buffy; that could get real ugly, real quickly. "Thank you Highness, you are truly extraordinary" he said, kissing her hand.

She shot him a brief smile and then was gone. Xander dropped back down into his chair and breathed a sigh of relief. Right now he was glad that he had watched all that 'Masterpiece Theater' with Giles. If he hadn't he probably would have started a diplomatic incident, maybe even a minor war. Xander was also glad again that no one else knew about this little visit, otherwise it would take him years to live it down. He glanced briefly at the gauntlet then set it aside; there were more important things to deal with at the moment. Picking up his phone he called one of the few numbers he had ever memorized. It only rang a couple of times when it was picked up "Hello".

"Hey there Giles, sorry to bother you but I just heard some very disturbing news."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Buffy Summers hung up the phone and leaned her forehead against the wall. It was happening again and she was having trouble believing it; another ex-boyfriend had gone off the rails and now Buffy and everyone she cared about was in danger. Buffy briefly wondered if maybe she ought to rethink her boyfriend choosing paradigm. She took a deep breath and slipped into business mode. Giles had gotten the word that the 'Immortal' was gunning for her, this meant that everyone here at Cleveland House was in danger and they needed to figure out how to deal with it. She wasn't looking forward to explaining to everyone why all of this was happening, but her personal discomfort was meaningless when compared to someone being hurt or killed because they weren't prepared. 'OK then' Buffy thought 'talk to Al and come up with a plan, then we'll spill to the whole house'. Having worked out a course of action, Buffy went looking for her Watcher.

The plan was fairly straightforward, large groups only and frequent check ins; and everyone had been much more understanding than Buffy had expected. She hadn't been as concerned about how the others would react as to how Alistair would react to the news.

FLASHBACK

" . . . . . and that's the whole story" Buffy concluded, head down, afraid to see what reaction her story had produced.

"Well, I'd say you've had some rum luck when it comes to dating."

"Rum luck, that's what you're calling it, rum luck; how about 'maybe you shouldn't date guys that are evil and twisted'."

"Well, you didn't know they were evil when the relationships started."

Buffy snorted at this "I knew they weren't good". Then she sighed and scrubbed her face with her hands "why am I so attracted to guys that I know are gonna hurt me?"

"Honestly I can't say Buffy, maybe it has something to do with your father."

"What, how?"

"Well your father caused your mother quite a bit of pain and whatnot, perhaps you believe that causing emotional pain is something men are supposed to do and you seek out those that will do so."

Buffy started to say something, but then really thought about what Alistair had just said and closed her mouth.

Alistair paused for a moment then added "then again it has been my observation that given a choice, girls do tend to go after the 'bad boy' much more often than not."

Again Buffy started to say something, and again she closed her mouth after she started thinking. "Maybe you're right" she finally allowed "so does that mean I'm doomed to relationship suckage?"

"Not at all, you just have to use a different relationship model than your father?"

"Who?"

"Well off the top of my head, how about Xander? He's always been there for you, and from my readings of Mr. Giles diaries he was always a staunch supporter of yours, both physically and emotionally. Mr. Giles even observed that for most of your time in Sunnydale, Xander was effectively your boyfriend; just without any of the usual benefits of the position."

Now Buffy was well and truly speechless, Giles had thought that; how could he possibly think that? But then Buffy started to consider the seven years in Sunnydale from an outsider's point of view and realized that the observation was pretty much right on the money.

"I always wondered why you two never dated."

"Well, it's complicated. When I first got there I thought that there were some possibilities, but Willow had kind of claimed him as her territory so I put those thoughts aside. Then he asked me out and I turned him down flat, later that night he brought me back from the dead and I never thanked him. Actually I went so far as to rub the fact in his face. After that I really don't think he would have gone out with me. I mean there were times when we might have had a second thought or two, but the timing never really worked out for either of us. There are lots of times that I've wondered 'what if', but in the end it just never happened."

"I see" Alistair said finally "I appreciate you've shown me by telling me all this, now lets go down and inform the girls about the changes we need to make."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

XANDER'S OFFICE, RIGHT AFTER HE CALLED GILES

Xander pulled out his cell phone and gave a call to Dawn, knowing that wherever she was, Oz was nearby. After a number of rings it was answered.

"Hey Dawn-star, it's me."

" . . . . . . ."

"No, I called you because the copier needs toner, yes it's important."

"………"

"I need you and Oz to get in here ASAP."

"……….."

"No it's not an apocalypse, but it is planning on how to prevent one."

"…………….."

"Yes, and that's why I want everyone in here, so we can bounce ideas off each other and come up with the best plan possible."

"…………."

"No, you can't have fifteen minutes."

"………….."

"No, I don't want to hear it and no I don't care what you two were doing, just get your butts in here now."

"…………."

"Cause if you don't I'll tell Buffy about the chocolate pudding and you'll never hear the end of it."

"………….."

"Yes, I know I'm a meanie, but right now I don't care. Get here in ten minutes or the story goes out to every Slayer house in the Western Hemisphere."

"……………."

"Yes, I'd tell Giles too. Goodbye Dawn." Xander sat back with a sigh.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Exactly nine and a half minutes later, Hurricane Dawn blew into Xander's office. The young brunette was spitting fire when she arrived, and even Oz seemed to almost have an expression on his face. She slammed the door open and yelled "OK, what the hell is so important".

Xander knew what had been interrupted so he was prepared to cut Dawn a lot of slack and just ignored her attitude. "Word is that the Immortal has decided that his reputation can't tolerate being dumped so he's going after Buffy to 'persuade' her to change her mind."

The news immediately put a damper on Dawn's anger "what are we going to do?"

"Plan out what to do when your sister calls in re-enforcements. We'll need to him em hard and fast because there'll probably be slayers caught in the crossfire."

"So, any ideas X"?

"Actually I do" he picked an item up off his desk and handed it to Dawn. "This is a gauntlet of Galen, it's primarily a healing device but I need you to figure out everything it can do and practice using it." He turned to Oz and handed him a list "here's a list of contacts in Cleveland that the council may not know about; give em all a call and see what they know and make sure they know to contact us if they learn anything."

"What about you and Faith?"

Xander picked up the Necronomicon and gave a little shudder "Faith and I have a little book work to do."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

FEBRUARY 3

Buffy looked around the table and wanted to cry. It had happened; the Immortal had made his move and hit one of their patrols last night. Irina was dead, Alistair captured and Stephanie was blaming herself because she had escaped relatively unscathed. Around the table were the remaining slayers and watchers and right now they were all looking to her; and she was mortally afraid that this was gonna turn into Sunnydale part II and she'd end up getting everyone killed. The note from the Immortal demanding that she exchange herself for Alistair didn't help matters. "So what are we going to do, Miss Summers" Cassie asked.

"First of all we're on lockdown until this is over, jobs, school, whatever; you're calling in sick. No one leaves the house unless it's day and even then you always take someone with you. We know that he's got lots of vamps working for him, but that doesn't mean he can't have other demons, more sunlight friendly demons working for him as well. As for this" Buffy picked up the note "this is for me and me alone to deal with."

"You're not going to actually trust him to make the exchange, are you" Bridgit; a Watcher from Australia, asked.

"No I'm not; however he knows our strength so we can't just meet him head on."

"So what are you going to do?"

Buffy answered with a feral grin "I'm gonna cheat."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Buffy tried to fight down a completely inappropriate smile, the Immortal and about sixty five vampires were holding Alistair in an abandoned church and all Buffy could think was 'cliché much'. She was standing on the steps at the front of the church and all the doors were open so she could see clearly, at least she could see the altar clearly. That's where the Immortal was as well as Alistair. The Watcher was tied spread eagle on the altar table, his chest bared; the Immortal was standing behind him with a smile that was both triumphant and psychotic. As for the vampires, well she didn't need her sight for them; the sheer number had her slayer senses pegged off scale. The church seemed to be lit by torches and the flickering shadows offered too many places of concealment, there would be no sneaking and hiding, this was gonna be head on. She briefly looked down at the shirt Xander had insisted she wear, it was bright yellow with a smiley face and 'Have a Nice Day' printed on the front 'even if I wanted to, there's no way I could sneak around in this monstrosity' she thought. Taking a breath she leapt from the stairs, through the vestibule and landed softly in the sanctuary, her sudden appearance startled the vamps around her; they pulled back, showing their game faces. But her focus was entirely on the Immortal, seeing her he simply looked more psychotic, something Buffy hadn't thought possible. "You all can leave now and stay un-dusty" Buffy called out in a clear voice "if you choose to stay put then all bets are off".

"Hiding behind bad jokes Elizabeth, that really isn't you" the Immortal replied as the vampires chuckled.

"No hiding Morty, I'm serious" she finally looked around at the vampires "anything that stays is dust, simple as that".

The vamps looked a bit uncertain in the face of Buffy's confidence but the Immortal just laughed again "and how are you going to accomplish that?"

In response Buffy said nothing, she just smiled.

This disconcerted the Immortal momentarily, so much so that he didn't notice her heading for him. It was only when the vampires started circling in preparation for attacking that he realized she had moved. His voice rang out through the church "leave her be, her fate is mine and mine alone". He smiled once more at the diminutive blond that had sought to leave him, the thought of her long and arduous correction making his smile grow larger.

Reluctantly the vampires backed off as Buffy faced her ex across Alistair's body. "I'm here, now let him go."

The Immortal smirked down at her "you know, I'm feeling inclined to alter our deal, how about I kill him and have them turn you?"

"Why is it that every time something like this goes down you nutsy evil types have to feel like you can just change a deal on a whim." Buffy then gave an involuntary shiver as her slayer sense started pinging even louder than before.

"That is simple my dear, it's because I am in control here, so I am free to indulge my whims."

"Yeah, but this isn't the first time I've been through something like this, and notice that I'm still here and the jerk-offs that thought they were in 'control' are all fertilizer. Are you beginning to see a pattern here?"

The Immortal's grin got even larger and, if possible; crazier "yes, it tells me that you have been dealing with inferior opponents, none that have my centuries of experience."

Buffy sneered and looked around "yeah, this is real original. So how about you just give up now before very bad things occur to you, because you might be immortal, but I'll bet I can make you wish you could die."

"Sorry Elizabeth" the Immortal said, pulling a dagger from the folds of the robe he was wearing "tonight I decide who dies and how."

"If you really believe that, then you're a lot dumber than I thought."

The Immortal sneered and started to say something when he looked up, something wasn't right and he could feel it. The vampires were all looking around, feeling the danger but not finding the source. Seemingly at once everyone looked up and saw a vertical line of light, right after the light appeared there was the sound. It was as though a door that was thoroughly rusted shut was being forced open only more so, the sound was more fundamental somehow. As the sound increased the line opened into a gateway, and something came through. The easiest analogy would be to compare it to a gigantic amoeba; it was essentially shapeless, with whatever equipment it deemed necessary forming and fading as the situation demanded. Then many things happened at once; a voice spoke in Buffy's head, telling her to cover Alistair's body with her own, dozens of tendrils lashed out of the dimensional visitor and destroyed the vampires, ripping off heads and limbs seemingly without effort and the Immortal overcame his fear, and the realization that he'd been played and tried to take away Buffy's victory by stabbing down into the Watcher's body. He only got one strike because as he raised his arm again he felt the air move and suddenly whatever it was, was looming over him. He looked up in fear and the thing darted forward and enveloped him in itself. He hung there writhing and screaming as the monster backed away from the altar and back through the gateway and into whatever dimension it had come from. The rift closed with another shriek and suddenly the church was silent except for Alistair's screaming. Buffy looked at the body under hers and realized that the Immortal had stabbed the Watcher in the gut; she couldn't even imagine the pain he was enduring at the moment. Looking up she yelled "get down here you all, he's hurt bad."

There was the sound of feet hurrying on unseen stairs and suddenly, and though teleported; Dawn and Oz were there by her. Oz got her off the injured man while Dawn examined the wound; absently Buffy noted that she was wearing this weird glove thingy that she'd never seen before. Turning to Oz and Buffy, Dawn said "I need you two to hold him down, I can heal him but it won't be painless. The two glanced at each other and Buffy grabbed the Watcher's thighs while Oz moved and took hold of the man's arms. As she watcher her younger sister move into position, Buffy wondered where Xander and Faith were.

'Just cleaning up the summoning ritual B' the dark Slayer's voice echoed in her head 'you don't want to screw it up and have ugly come back for you'.

'That's for sure" Buffy thought 'and what the hell was that thing anyway'?

'Xander called it a Shoggoth' came the reply 'we had to make a deal with it so it would help'.

'What was the deal'?

'Well it's been studying humans for damn near ever, but we die to easy, so we promised it one that would be a lot harder to kill'.

Buffy shuddered at the thought of the Immortal's fate, but seeing Alistair's pain as Dawn healed the messy wound tempered her sympathy a great deal. 'Was that why I had to wear this god-awful shirt' Buffy asked her sister slayer 'and how are we doing this'.

'Yeah, we needed something easy to ID you so you wouldn't end up as a specimen as well, and it's this book B, the things got more tricks than a cereal box'.

'Thanks Faith, and thank Xander too please'.

'Sure thing B, glad we could help.'

'I'm betting you're whipped, you guys just wanna spend the night here'?

There was a moment of silence as Dawn finished up with Alistair, who had blessedly passed out; Dawn was looking a bit whipped as well. 'Sure B, sounds like a plan' came Faith's reply and later the six of them left the church and headed back to Cleveland House.


	6. Relatively Speaking

A/N As always, I'd like to thank the people that have take the time to read and review this story. I appreciate you taking the time to do so. As usual all reviews are welcome, but please keep the criticism coherent; as pointless rants melt my brain and I can't afford to loose any more of it. It is needless to say, but I don't own any of these characters, or the rights to them; much to my chagrin. So here's the next chapter, enjoy.

RELATIVELY SPEAKING

MARCH 6

Samantha Carter was baffled and that didn't happen very often. It had been three weeks since SG1 had come back from PX3-W25 and she still couldn't figure out how some of the technology they'd found functioned; or even what its function was supposed to be. The one piece of working technology they'd found violated or by-passed two of the basic laws of physics. There were two things that managed to comfort her during these weeks; one was that Daniel still couldn't decipher the language that the markings were written in, the other was that they'd sent their findings to the Tok'ra and only received two weeks of silence in return. These things didn't precisely comfort Sam, but they did make her feel less like a dunce. Actually Daniel was tying himself in knots because not only couldn't he translate the language, but the language seemed to have no set structure; the rules seemed to change randomly from one paragraph to the next. Sam ran her hand through her hair and glared at the enigmatic piece of junk, it didn't solve the problem but it did make her feel better.

"Still no answer's Carter?"

Sam jumped at the sound of her voice and transferred the glare from the equipment to the figure that stood smirking in her doorway. The glare had about the same effect on him. "No sir, no answers yet."

"You tried asking for help?"

Sam sighed yet again "yes sir, I've got calls into several Universities as well as the Tok'ra."

"Well, maybe something'l shake loose."

"I hope so sir, cause I'm getting pretty tired of just staring at this thing."

"It could be worse Carter; you could be pacing around frantically, muttering 'it just doesn't make sense' all the time."

"I knew Daniel was having trouble, so he's still stuck?"

"Like a bug on flypaper, you wanna go rub it in a bit?"

Sam knew what the Colonel meant, there were times when Daniel's obvious intelligence and abilities made him come across as a bit superior when other people were having trouble with something. Deciding that she was getting nowhere fast, Sam stood; just in time to hear the words "offworld activation" echo throughout the base."

They both got to the gate-room in time to hear Siler call out "it's the Tok'ra sir."

"Open the Iris" Hammond replied.

Sam felt Jack tense up; sure that Anise was coming for another of her stress inducing visits. Personally she was prepared for that, what Sam wasn't prepared for was seeing her father come through the gate. Sam moved forward to greet him, but of course Hammond was there first.

"Jacob, it's good to see you and Selmak again."

"It's good to see you as well George, I realize that this is a surprise."

"It is that, so what brings you here?"

"Two weeks ago Samantha sent us the pictures and schematics of some sort of unknown technology; I'm here to advise her, and all of you on that." Hammond noted Jacob's eyes moving purposefully around the room as he spoke, implying that the discussion wouldn't be for general consumption.

"Of course" General Hammond replied, then he turned to one of the soldiers there "airman, please escort our guest to conference room two, and make sure the rest of SG1 is invited, I have a feeling they're all going to want to hear this."

The airman saluted the general and turned to Jacob/Selmak "if you would come with me sir".

Jacob fell into step behind the airman as another ran off to alert Teal'c and Daniel to the meeting; Sam and Jack fell into step behind the Tok'ra. Both were silent, wondering what can of worms was about to be opened. They arrived at the conference room and once the door was closed Jacob greeted his daughter warmly. Releasing the hug he asked "how are you Samantha" then eyeing her for a moment added "aside from not sleeping I mean"?

Sam blushed "I'm fine dad, I'll be better when we crack this thing."

"We'll see about that" he replied then turned to Jack "Colonel, how are you"?

"You know me sir, nothing can make me loose sleep."

"Good for you, I wish I could say the same thing" he then turned as the door opened to admit General Hammond, Teal'c and Daniel. In a moment everyone got comfortable and Hammond opened the session "so what can you tell us about these things Jacob"?

"Honestly very little past what you all know."

"So why the visit" O'Neill asked.

"Because what you sent us reminded me of something I'd seen before."

"OK, so what system is it in" Jack asked, knowing that there would be some sort of mission to the furthest backwash of the galaxy.

"You misunderstand Colonel, it isn't something Selmak has seen, it is something I've seen, here on earth."

"That's not possible" Sam fired at her father "I've checked every database I could find or hack into, I've talked to dozens of experts and no-one here has ever seen anything like it."

"This wouldn't be in any database you could access Sam."

"Which one is that, the National Archives, the Vatican Archives, which?"

"None of those, it's the one for Miskatonic University."

As the name was said, reactions were mixed. Jack and Teal'c looked indifferent, Hammond looked intrigued, Sam was lost in thought, wondering why she could access the school's computers and Daniel, well Daniel looked like someone had smacked him across the head with a board.

"Why would something like this be at the repository?"

"It's rather a long story; suffice it to say that Miskatonic is the best possibility I can think of."

"Why is it called the 'Repository' Daniel" Jack asked.

"It's supposed to be the 'Repository of all knowledge', at least that's what they say; and the stories I've heard back that up." Daniel turned back to Jacob "but they are insanely insular, you've got to be an insider to see what they have."

"Normally that's true" Jacob replied "but I think Sam could get in."

"Why me?"

"Because the President of the University is you uncle."

"Uncle" Sam yelled "I've had an uncle all this time and you've never told me."

"Yes, my brother Randolph. And the reason I've never told you is that we went our separate ways long before you were born. Randolph was a lot like your grandfather, always interested in puzzles and oddities, they were so alike. Then your grandfather disappeared. We fought because Randolph didn't believe that the old man was dead, even after years of not contacting us. He had started looking to the occult as a way of contacting your grandfather, finding where he was. I told him it was nonsense and he was wasting his time and effort on superstitious mumbo-jumbo instead of looking after our mother. He never said anything after that, but he kept drifting farther away from us until we only saw him a few days out of the year. The last time I saw him was when he came back from an archeological dig right before my high-school graduation. Randolph looked haunted, like he'd seen something so horrible that there was no way he'd ever recover. Trying to get him to snap out of it, I asked about the pieces he'd brought back. He showed them to me, and explained that they were supposed to be items used in a voodoo type ritual that had been used by Polynesian tribes for centuries. I never saw them again, at least not until you sent me pictures of them."

"As fascinating as all this is" Jack broke in "do you really think they'll have anything that could help us figure this out?"

Jacob fixed O'Neill with an intense glare "I wouldn't have suggested it otherwise Colonel. Pieces exactly like the ones you've found have been at the University for almost fifty years, if anyone knows about them, they will."

"So now I just need to crack the database and check" Sam said.

"I wouldn't try that Samantha".

"Why not?"

"Because there are things that go on in and around that university that frighten me. There are no guards on the buildings, but no-one ever breaks in, people that have tried to gain access to their computer systems have ended up as vegetables. The message is clear, if you try to take anything of theirs; you pay, and pay hard."

Seeing that Jack was about to open his mouth and make things worse, Hammond stepped in "Major, you and Dr. Jackson go there and see if they are willing to help, and if so; use it. Travel incognito and check in every day."

"Sir that's overkill, we're not leaving the planet, heck we're not even leaving the country."

"I realize that Major, suffice it to say that I have my reasons" he stood "now unless anyone has anything useful to add, you're dismissed. And Jacob, thank you for your help."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

MARCH 8

Office of Randolph Carter

Now Sam was nervous, and that was a feeling that she detested even more than feeling baffled. Daniel wasn't helping either; he kept mentioning different rumors that he'd heard about the school, each one more horrific than the next and all completely unbelievable. They were sitting in a very tastefully decorated office waiting to find out if they'd even be given the chance to find out if the answers they were looking for were here. The fact that she was meeting her father's brother for the first time might have factored into the nervousness as well, but she wasn't about to admit that, not even to herself. Finally the door opened and an older man dressed in an Edwardian style suit was standing there. He didn't really resemble Jacob Carter, but his eyes were the exact same shade of blue as Samantha's and his smile was the same as well. "Hello Samantha, Dr. Jackson; it's good to meet you, please come in." He stepped back into the office and they followed. The office itself looked like something from the turn of the century; it somehow fit with Randolph's over-all appearance and revealed more about the man than a conversation ever would. Sam quickly sat down; Daniel was looking around the room, and watched her uncle move. He had an economy of motion, he moved with a grace that made him look much younger than she knew him to be and spoke of a man who was quite full of surprises.

As he sat down, Randolph looked across at his niece; even if he hadn't known she was in the military, her posture practically screamed it, as well as her hair. He wondered what she wanted; he knew that Jacob would only have mentioned him in great extremity which suggested that he was needed for something specific. The then turned and briefly regarded Dr. Daniel Jackson; he knew of the man's reputation as a proponent of unconventional theories, and that he had disappeared for some time. At one time Randolph had briefly considered offering him the Arcane Studies chair but he knew that for all the man's unconventional theories, he was too grounded in what he thought of as the real world to fit in that position. He looked back at Samantha and noticed that she was sizing him up, just as he was doing the same to Dr. Jackson; obviously genetics worked in mysterious ways. "So what can I do for you Samantha?"

She looked surprised, there were no pleasantries, no social discourse; just business. "We found some pieces at an archeological site and can't make heads or tails of them. I mentioned them to dad and he said they sounded like something you'd found; kind of cone shaped metal objects, you had them right before Dad graduated High School."

Randolph smiled, and his face transformed from something cold and business-like to almost a caricature of everyone's kindly old uncle. "Yes I remember those, I had found them in the South Seas on one of the School's expeditions."

"Are they still here?"

"I expect so, I turned them over to the Arcane Studies Department a long time ago but I can't imagine that they would have been sold or given away."

"Arcane Studies?"

"Yes Dr. Jackson, Arcane Studies; this University has always had such a department, it is in the School's charter."

"What kind of subjects would you teach?"

"They vary from chairman to chairman, but you will generally have subjects on obscure religions, strange literature, supernatural creatures like Zombies and magic . . . . . . ."

"But those things don't exist" Sam broke in "magic and zombies; you mean they're teaching things that aren't real?"

Randolph looked at his niece, his gaze was hard and there was no humor at all in his face "well it is now perfectly clear that you are Jacob's daughter. Declaiming so forcefully on subjects for which you have no knowledge. You are so certain Samantha, but have you ever researched the subjects, have you ever turned your phenomenal intellect to such a course; or are you merely repeating the cant of popular notion."

Sam opened her mouth once or twice and tried to answer but nothing was coming. She knew in her mind that none of the things her uncle had mentioned were possible, but how did she know that? Randolph was correct in assuming she'd never studied something like that, she'd never felt the need to; but now she was thinking that such a narrow outlook may have been a mistake, maybe.

"I would suggest you go see Dr. Harris, he can explain the operations of his department better than I can; and he may be able to help with your situation Samantha". When he received two nods from his guests, Randolph picked up a piece of paper and an old fountain pen and started writing. "Here is a note that will let you move about the campus, I don't think you'll have any trouble on that score, and just go to the basement of Lovecraft Hall, that is where the Arcane Studies Department is."

Sam just nodded again, her mind still preoccupied with the tongue lashing she'd just gotten so Daniel stepped forward and shook the older man's hand "thank you for your help."

"Don't thank me yet young man" Randolph said with a twinkle in his eye "you don't know if I've helped yet."

"True" Daniel replied with a grin of his own "but I'd like to think you have."

With that they left the office and the building and started looking for Lovecraft Hall.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Xander Harris had mixed feelings about meetings. Early on they had been fun, well maybe not fun but the Scooby gatherings had been frantic nerves and working with friends, so they were definitely filed under the good memories. Once he had gotten into construction, meetings hadn't been nearly as engaging, but they had been useful, so they were still categorized as OK. Then with the birth of the new council, Xander had decided that meetings were now tools of Satan as well as a cure for insomnia. He could not believe how skillful some people were at trivializing the momentous and complicating the obvious, and doing so for hours. There were times that he just wanted to start ranting and clearing the room with his favorite axe. But he was convinced that even had he done so, like the hydra, two other meetings would rise to take the place of the one he butchered. The department meetings at the University, when he was a student; were not much better, people scheming for petty advantages and only hearing what they wanted to believe. Here at Miskatonic, faculty meetings were fairly smooth; Carter ran a tight ship, and apparently Xander scared the hell out of most of the other chairs, so he was able to cut off most discussion before it got too long winded; so things weren't too bad. But department meetings, now those were fun. Mostly because it wasn't really a meeting, it was four friends sitting around talking at the end of the day. In Xander's mind it was approaching the old Scooby meetings for camaraderie, without the threat of world endage to complicate things. That was until today. Xander had something he wanted to ask, and he knew it was going to knock some of his friends off kilter; but he really believed that it was necessary. He looked up from his desk as the door opened and his three colleagues filed in; Faith was first, as always, followed by Dawn and Oz. The pair of them had decided to stop maintaining the illusion and were now openly living together; every now and then Xander would swear his ears were still ringing from when Buffy had been told of the arrangement. He smiled at the pair of them and then his gaze drifted to Faith. The two of them were getting closer still, but physically were taking it slow. Sure there had been some pretty involved kissage, but so far nothing beyond that. Sometimes Xander thought they might be taking things too slow, but given their respective pasts, better safe than sorry. Besides, Faith seemed to like the whole 'dating thing'; not that she'd ever admit to liking anything so 'girly'.

"OK, now that we're here, how are classes going, any problems?"

"Well there's a couple of chicks that keep askin about 'magic' in the Religions class."

Xander thought for a second "you think they're Wiccans, or something more serious?"

"Nothin about em sets off the slayer senses, and if they're Wiccans then I'd bet they're a lot more into the 'running naked through the fields' part than the 'power and spells' part."

Everyone laughed at this, finally Xander said "OK, but keep an eye on em just in case. Now, how about the Lit class there Dawn-star?"

"No big problems, you might get a couple of complaints though."

"Why is that?"

"There's a couple of Southern Baptist types in class and they're less than thrilled with the discussions about books that didn't make it into the Bible."

"Ah" was all Xander said, then he turned to the last member "and the Mythology class"?

"Cool"

"Good to hear it" Xander said, giving the terse Philosopher a smile.

"So, you got anything for us X?"

"Yeah, I do, but it's a little out there, so please listen to the whole thing before freaking out."

The other three looked at each other for a second of silent communication then Oz just said "spill".

"OK, you know that we've been making friends and alliances with the peaceful demon clans around here, and that's helped out a lot with information and stuff. Now we know that sooner or later information about slayers and demons is gonna make it to the public, you can't have that many super powered girls running around without someone noticing, and probably digging for answers. And when that happens there'll be a hell of a fight and a lot of our friends, our non-human friends are gonna be caught in the crossfire. So I was thinking about averting that somehow, and I came up with the idea of making them citizens." He paused for a second to gauge the level of acceptance in the room, quickly he moved on "so I figured the best way to do that was to talk the Undertaker into admitting them as students. If we have them live openly on campus, then it will go a long way to the general public accepting them, and the government acknowledging them. Now remember, I'm not talking about any demon, just the peacable ones, the ones we're allied to and can count on. Because one other thing occurred to me, if we have them on our side, then when this fight hits they'll fight with us and not against us."

"Why would they do that" Dawn asked; unable to contain herself.

"Pure self interest. If the more violent clans are wiped out, then it's a safer world for them."

"So you're suggesting making soulless evil demons citizens; am I hearing this right?"

"Not exactly, think about it for a second; we usually deal with the evil, end the world kind of demon, that's true, but what about the Braechen's or others like them. We really don't know a lot because we don't normally have anything to do with the peaceful types because they rarely make trouble. So for all we know there could be millions of peaceful beings out there that would be willing to help us out, if we help them. And another thing, have we ever checked; seriously, do we know that all demons are soulless. Again, for all we know, vampires might be the exception, not the rule. And even if they are soulless, how does having a soul make you good? Stalin, Hitler, serial killers like Bundy and Dahmer all had souls but that didn't stop them from doing things that just make you want to hurl. Closer to home, think about Spike; did you really notice a huge change in his behavior between when he was soulless and when he had a soul?"

The other three sat back for a second, it was true that they'd never really given the matter much thought; but then again it had been relatively simple, demons try to end the world, you end the demons. But what about the ones that just wanted to live, they didn't get much attention because they weren't causing trouble.

"You realized this is seriously whacked out; even if you're right and these things have souls, there is no way any of the suits on the board will go for it."

"I think they will."

"Why?"

"Because, despite the swell in attendance because of our presence; the school is not doing well financially. If they allow this, then the student population will boom, and the folks in charge will be swimming in green. No suit in the world could say no to that."

"You're gonna need a test case, someone to break through" Oz said.

"I know"

"Any ideas?"

"The perfect candidate; Clem."

The girls smiled in recognition, but Oz didn't, he didn't remember Clem. "Who?"

"He's a Vlrodack, sweet guy and about as in-offensive as anyone can be" Dawn answered. "Plus he knows me and Xander, and even met Faith so he'll have some familiar faces around to make things a bit easier."

"I guess the question is" Xander said "do you think I should go ahead or not. Cause personally, I'm thinking the sooner the better, you know; but if you all think I should hold off; well, I'm listening."

Faith stood "I wanna take some time with this one X, no reason to go off half cocked yet; we're not on a time table."

"Fair enough, we don't need to talk to Carter any time soon, but I would like you all to think about it and let me know what you come up with."

Dawn and Oz stood and were getting ready to leave when the door opened and a blond stuck her head in the opening "Dr. Harris"?

"Yes" Xander said while standing up as well "can I help you?"

"I hope so" the blond replied, opening the door further to reveal herself and a rather mousy looking brunette with glasses "my name is Samantha Carter; Randolph is my uncle and he said you might be able to help me with a problem I'm having."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Sam breathed a sigh of relief when she finally found the right door, it had taken quite a while to navigate the rather labyrinthine basement of Lovecraft Hall. As she stood outside she could hear voices carrying on a discussion inside; she waited until what sounded like a break in the conversation to tap lightly on the door, open in and stick her head in. At first her heart sank, there was no way that this was the right place; the kid behind the desk barely looked thirty. Tentatively she called out "Dr. Harris"? It turned out that she was in the right place after all. Dr. Harris was a young man, and with him were two women and one man; the women were both brunettes and looked to be even younger than he was. The young man's hair was blue and by the way he was standing with one of the brunettes, it was obvious that they were together. Sam gave the cover of who she was and why she was there, then she went to introduce Daniel; she didn't expect what happened after that.

"You, you're Daniel Jackson the Egyptologist" the young brunette almost yelled.

"Yes, I am" he replied "who are you"?

"My name is Dawn, Dawn Summers" she then turned to the man behind the desk "this is the guy Xander, the putz that keeps thinking he can correct my pronunciation." She whipped back to Daniel "it's damn aggravating, like having a third grader try and correct your calculus". She then darted forward, grabbed Daniel by his ear and started off down the hall "you're coming with me and we'll see who's got their epiglottals in the right place". The short blue haired guy followed the pair, the girl berating Daniel at every step and Daniel powerless to do anything except follow and complain about his ear.

Sam just stood there not sure if she should follow Daniel or not when Dr. Harris and the other brunette just chuckled. "Don't worry; he'll be fine once hurricane Dawn blows itself out. Heck he'll probably learn a lot if he unbends enough to listen. Now Samantha, if you'd have a seat you can tell me what I can do for you."

Sam cast a glance at the brunette, who looked like she wasn't moving any time soon. "That's Faith, a fellow faculty member; she can be of great assistance so I'd like for her to stay" Dr. Harris informed her "as for myself, please call me Xander, all my friends do."

Sam thought about it for a moment then gave a little nod "some colleagues and I came across these items quite by accident" she said, pulling out the artifacts that SG-1 had brought back. "We are having trouble identifying their composition and function despite several weeks of work. My father got a look at them and said that my Uncle had possessed something like these at one time so I came here and asked him about them. He said that he'd given them to this department and sent me to talk to you." Here she looked up and noticed that the corner of the office was glowing.

She saw Dr. Harris; Xander, begin to examine the items, and even Faith stepped in for a quiet word, but Sam just couldn't seem to take her eyes off the glowing corner; she was quite sure that it hadn't been glowing when she had first sat down. The glow seemed to be getting more intense, but never so bright that it hurt.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Well Miss Carter, I believe we can help you" Xander started, then noticed that his guest wasn't looking at him, but at a corner of his office. He turned to look and saw the corner glowing and immediately knew what was happening. He jumped up and yelled "Faith, get the pad"; as she dashed out to find the object in question, Xander started moving the furniture away from that corner. Faith came back with the pad in record time and flopped it in the corner just as the light went out and a diminutive blond fell from the ceiling with a rather girly shriek and landed on the target.

"Buffy, how many times have I told you that you have to make that second mark on the right or you come out of the ceiling?"

"One too few" the blond said, getting up with a smirk "is Dawn around?"

"She's in her office berating some guy that had the nerve to correct her pronunciation."

"Ohh, can I go listen?"

"Better not B, you know how she gets when she has an audience, we might be there for a week."

"True, the girl loves to put on a show."

"So what else brings you by?"

"Well Giles had a question about . . . . . . ." it was then that she finally noticed Sam in the office. "Ummm, can we go to your office to talk?"

"Sure, you gonna be OK here X?"

"Yes Faith, I'll be fine, and Buffy, it's good to see you. You gonna be here for a while?"

"Maybe a couple of days, don't worry, we'll have time to catch up."

"Looking forward to it" he said as she and Faith left the room.

Xander started to put the office furniture back where it went when he saw the look on Sam's face "what"?

"She just fell out of the ceiling."

"Yes, she did. If she'd done it right she'd have come out on the floor."

"So people popping up like that is common?"

"I don't know about common, but it isn't unusual" Xander said, sitting back down. "Now that the entertainment portion of the meeting is out of the way, why don't I tell you what you've got here?"


	7. Eye Opening Experiences

A/N Sorry for the delay on this one, Christmas and all. Once again I'd like to take the time to thank all of the people that are reading and responding to my tale, I appreciate it. It goes without saying that Buffy, Stargate, and the Lovecraft stories are the properties of someone other than myself; I'm just taking them out for a little stroll. As always, criticism is fine so long as it isn't some pointless rant, as those just serve to kill off the few brain cells I have left, so please keep it coherent and on topic; Thanks. Now that I've bored you long enough, on with the story.

POE1911

EYE OPENING EXPERIENCES

Samantha Carter looked across the desk at the young man and started re-evaluating the situation. He was obviously confident and personable, with an air of confidence about him that automatically made you trust him; but Sam figured that was true of con men and used car salesmen as well. Deep down Sam knew that this had to be some kind of scam, a girl had fallen out of the ceiling for goodness sakes, and Harris was treating it as something common. "So what are they?"

"Short answer is that they're energy storage systems or batteries."

"That's it, they're batteries?"

"No, that's not it, but the answer is gonna drift into some territory that you won't be comfortable with."

"How do you know that" Sam asked with a little heat.

"Because I saw the way you reacted to Buffy showing up. You're trying to figure out how it happened, like spotting a magicians trick; and making me out to be some academic version of a snake-oil salesman. So trying to move you out of your narrow little mental comfort zone is gonna be like dead lifting a redwood so if it's all the same to you, let's just leave it at 'they're batteries' and end the conversation now."

"You know I can't do that" Sam replied.

"Yeah, I figured as much" Xander sighed "but I can always hope."

"So what about a battery is going to be so hard for me to accept?"

"Where it gets its power."

"Oh, and where is that?"

"Souls"

"Excuse me"

"You heard me correctly Ms. Carter, these devices are used to collect and store the energy from souls."

"But that can't . . . . ."

"STOP" Xander yelled, cutting Sam off in mid rant "we need to get something clear right now if we're gonna get anywhere." Sam was fuming but silent so Xander went on "are you a fan of Stephen King, Ms. Carter"?

"No, not that it's relevant."

"But it is; there's this wonderful part in 'Salem's Lot; that deals with vampires you know, where the characters are talking about what's going on. And in the course of the discussion they realize what a limiting word 'Can't' is. It isn't a word that means 'something impossible', it is a word that signifies something you don't want to think about, something that will force you to re-think everything that you once thought was correct, something that you've never been comfortable with so you never thought about it. So if you're gonna learn anything today, you've gotta keep 'Can't' out of the equation. Can you do that?"

Sam looked at the intense young man in front of her; his eye was burning with an almost missionary zeal. He had challenged Sam in a way she hadn't been challenged in a long time. Sam realized that she'd gotten comfortable with the way things were at SGC; where she was considered the brightest light in the marquee. Now someone was asking, no; daring her to try out an area where she was out of her depth. Well, she'd never been able to resist a dare. "OK Dr. Harris, I'll try."

"Do or do not, there is not try" Xander replied.

Sam smiled "quoting Yoda at me Dr. Harris, OK then, 'Can't' is out of my vocabulary for now. So how do these things work and how do souls give them energy?"

Xander gave her a bright smile at her reply "well, I'll answer the second part first, now according to Einstein, anything with mass has energy, correct."

"Yes"

"And souls have mass."

"They do?"

"Yeah, it kinda shocked me as well." He leaned forward "do you have a friend that's a doctor?"

"Yes, I know one or two."

"I mean a medical doctor."

"Oh, yes I know a doctor; her name is Janet."

"Then ask Janet about the 23 grams the next time you see her."

"23 grams, what's that."

"Well, there was a series of experiments on terminal patients and all they did was place the patients bed on a balance, a very good balance. Then they would monitor the mass of the patient and the difference in mass between someone alive and someone dead is always somewhere around 23 grams. Nothing was removed and all possible variables were controlled for, so the only difference in the patient at the times they were measured is that for one, they were alive and for the other they were dead. It was therefore hypothesized that the difference in mass was due to the departure of the soul."

Sam was stunned, she'd never even heard of something like this before. "Do you have a copy of the experiment and its conclusions?"

"No, but your doctor friend ought to be able to push you in the right direction. So, to continue, if a soul has mass, then it has energy; and energy can be collected and stored, hence the objects in front of us."

"So how do they work, is it just like a vacuum cleaner and sucks up any soul it can?"

"No, it has to be activated, to extend the analogy; you have to turn it on, like your vacuum cleaner. Otherwise it just sits there and does nothing."

"So how do these things work?"

"They're voice activated, you see the symbols here" he pointed as he asked. Sam just nodded and he continued "well they're actually words, like hieroglyphics and if you say them in the right way you can operate this thing."

"And what can it do?"

"Well if it's the usual model it can collect, of course; then you've got the controlled release and the total release."

"So, in battery terms; you've got normal operation, recharging, and dumping all the energy at once?"

"Exactly"

"And if we decided to dump all the energy at once, how much are we talking about?"

"Well, I can't say for certain without some additional testing and research, but I'd have to say roughly as much as a hydrogen bomb."

Sam suddenly turned very pale "you're kidding".

"Nope, these things can pack quite a wallop when they're fully charged."

"Do you mean to tell me that I've been walking around with a case full of bombs that could be set off by saying the wrong word?"

"Yeah, but it's not a typical language so the odds of inadvertent detonation were pretty small."

"How unusual are we talking about here, Latin unusual or Basque unusual."

"Rarer than Navajo."

Sam was surprised, Navajo had been chosen for use as a code because it was such a rare language, and now she was being told that the language on the artifacts was rarer still. "Would Daniel know it?"

"My guess would be no, do you want me to tell Dawn to give him the basics?"

"Why don't you just show him how they work?"

"Because I don't want to see cities blowing up on the news because he inadvertently uttered the wrong phrase, forcing him to learn the language will also force him to think about what these things can be used for, and how dangerous they are."

"Don't you trust us?"

"Frankly, no. I'm doing this because I'm hoping you'll realize you're out of your league on this one and leave the devices with us. Honestly I believe they're too dangerous to leave in the hands of non-professionals."

"Non-professionals" Sam yelled "I'll have you know that we employee some of the best minds on the planet and have access to resources you can only dream about."

"And who is asking for who's help" Xander asked. "If what you said were true Ms. Carter, you wouldn't be here."

Sam had no answer to that, so she changed the subject "and how do I know that you know anything, all I have is your cock and bull story about these things being batteries and rare languages; you haven't proven anything."

Sam expected the young man to explode, instead he just laughed "you're correct Ms. Carter, I haven't given any proof yet, well let's see if we can do something about that". And before she could object he waved his hand over the objects while muttering in a language that reminded her of Klingon (not that she would ever admit to watching Star Trek); instantly the batteries lit up. They were not consistent; some were brighter while others barely lit at all. Sam looked up at the young man, her brow clouded with questions.

He just gave a feral smile and said "level check, so any more questions".

"Yeah" Sam replied "how'd the girl come out of the ceiling"?

Xander just leaned close, still grinning and whispered "physics".

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Buffy sat down with a grin on her face. She was in Faith's office and somehow it never failed to make her smile. The idea of 'wild child, get some; get gone' Faith having an office and teaching students always tickled her sense of the absurd; and gave her hope that she, like Faith, was meant for something more than just poking monsters with pointy sticks.

"What's with the smile B"?

"Nothing really, it's just the thought of you teaching, it's nothing I ever would have pictured you doing, well except for teaching slaying."

"You and me both; every now and then I'll look around the lecture hall and see all those kids looking back at me and wonder 'how the hell did I get here'?"

"And then you remember that you're here because of Xander; so how's that going?"

Faith blushed, which was something Buffy had never expected to see "good, I mean you know I'd never done the dating thing; but after the last month I wish I had. He's a great guy and we have fun and it's completely different from anything I've done before and I'm so scared at times that I'm gonna fuck it up somehow . . . . . . ." She stopped because Buffy was laughing out loud "so what's with the laughter" Faith asked with a little heat.

It took a few seconds, but once Buffy had herself under control she blurted out "you sounded like you were channeling Willow there for a second and it was the funniest thing I'd ever heard." She got herself further under control and continued "you shouldn't worry about that kind of thing Faith, you won't screw it up, and neither will Xander; if for no other reason than you would have to deal with Dawn if either of you did."

Faith just nodded her head at that; Little D was a force of nature when she wanted to be. "Ya got that one right B" then her eyes focused on the blond slayer "so why did Jeaves want ya to drop by, I figured this isn't just a social call"?

Mentally Buffy shifted gears, she had wanted to dig a little deeper into the relationship but she let it go for now "he was wondering if you'd figured out the differences in vamp activity and if it's permanent."

"Yeah, we have; and it's something you'd never expect."

"What is it?"

"Ghouls"

"Ghouls, what the hell are Ghouls."

"Well from what we've been able to piece together, Ghouls start out as human, but then they get interested in death, and eating the dead. Once they start this they seem to change, kind of evolution in reverse; and turn into these kind of sub-human creatures that live underground and eat dead people. We figure there's some kind of ritual or rituals that they go through, but we haven't gotten that much yet."

Buffy was looking a little sick "EEWWW, with a side of Yuck; why would anyone decide that eating dead people was a good thing"?

"No idea, but there are some benefits that we've figured out; they don't age, or if they do it's at a fraction of normal aging, they're immune to possession and they can jump dimensions; well a few dimensions at least."

Buffy looked thoughtful "so you think that the no dying feature is what appeals?"

"No idea, but if you're gonna get a benefit from lunching up a corpse, I guess that's a good one."

"And you said that they were behind the differences in vampire activity, how?"

"Well they hate the bloodsuckers, X figures it has to do with competing for food, the more vamps the fewer corpses that stay put if you know what I mean. So wherever these things are, vamps aren't."

Buffy looked distinctly ill now "great, just when I think things can't get any grosser". She took a couple of deep breaths and got herself back under control. "OK, so I get the whole competing thing, but how do they make such a difference in vampire activity?"

"Well, they're immortal; vamps can't kill em and can't turn em, so they've got nothing they can do to these things."

"So why aren't these ghouls everywhere?"

"Well they don't have little ghoul kids, they only grow by . . . . . recruitment I guess you'd say. And you can probably figure that they don't get a whole lot. But once you get a sizable colony of ghouls, then vamps just leave the place alone. Most of the colonies are in older, long settled areas cause that's where they've had enough time to build up some numbers."

"Which explains why Western Europe and the East Coast of the US is almost vamp free.

"Yep, and why South America is so jumpin, along with the West Coast and Australia. There are a few conditions, like hellmouths and permafrost; that change the rules some"; she handed a map across to Buffy "but we've taken them into account."

Buffy opened the map and gaped, it had everything, where heavy patrols were needed, where there was only light activity, what kind of other demons were found there, the works. She looked up at her sister slayer "thanks Faith, this'll help a lot."

"No sweat B" then she looked aghast "shit I forgot the best part".

"What's that?"

"I forgot to tell ya that X is negotiating with a couple of these colonies so they'll help us out if we need it."

"Really" Buffy exclaimed. For a moment her thoughts drifted to what it would be like to have immortal, vamp unfriendly; allies. But then she remembered how they got that way and felt sick again.

"Yeah, but that's still iffy" Faith replied, then she leaned forward "now that work is out of the way, what's up with you and Al"?

Now it was Buffy's turn to blush.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Daniel Jackson's world had been fundamentally shaken so many times he was immune to its effects, or so he thought. But less than five minutes in the presence of Dawn Summers and her quiet companion had shown him that he could still be profoundly shaken by events of great import. He tried to put it off to the whole 'getting chewed out' part, but that wasn't the truth. The truth was that he had kind of gotten used to being the foremost Egyptian scholar in the world and his work with the Stargate program had just reinforced that feeling. New he was coming to grips with the fact that he wasn't, and what's more was the notion that the person that most likely was, was under thirty, a girl and virtually unknown in the academic community. It was a lot to take in, and it made concentrating on the fundamentals of pronunciation just that much harder.

"Did you follow all that?"

"What" was his less than stellar reply.

"The whole bit about the diphthongs, did you follow that or do I need to repeat it" Dawn asked in a rather condescending tone.

He grinned and blushed a bit "sorry, I'm having trouble taking all this in; do you think you could go over it again, and a bit slower this time"?

"And quieter as well" the laconic young man added; surprising Daniel.

It finally sank in, and Dawn dipped her head in embarrassment "sorry about that, I just figured you already knew all this stuff but was having trouble with the actual pronunciation."

"Nope, I've never seen it before; heck I don't know anyone that has."

"Really, just about everyone I know is familiar with this stuff."

"CSU wasn't" the quiet young man put in. When Daniel turned to look at him again he just gave a small smile and said "Oz".

"Huh?"

"Oz is his name, Dr. Daniel Osbourne officially but we all call him Oz. And he's correct, none of my professors at Cleveland State were familiar with this either." Dawn looked surprised for a moment, like something obvious had occurred to her "I guess I never bothered figuring out why, Xander, Giles and all the others knew this stuff so I figured everyone did." She reached for a slim book on a shelf behind her and handed it to Daniel "here's everything you need to know about pronouncing Egyptian but didn't know you needed to ask."

He looked at the book, it was so slim it almost qualified as a pamphlet. The cover was standard blue with white writing that said "A pronunciation guide: Egyptian". It was obviously part of a set; Daniel looked at the publisher, and aside from the fact that they were British; he couldn't ever remember seeing anything of theirs. "Can I keep this" he asked.

"Sure, I've got a few laying around here so not a problem." Then she leaned forward, resting her arms on her desk and looking at Daniel with a predatory gleam "how about we knock off this boring Egyptian stuff and discuss something fun, like Sumerian."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

BACK AT THE MOUNTAIN

"General, can I ask you a question?"

"What's on your mind Colonel?"

"You recognized that place when Jacob mentioned it, I know you did; and Carter was right, having her and Daniel check in everyday is overkill. You said you had your reasons and I believe that" Jack paused "care to share what they are"?

George Hammond sighed, thought for a moment then straightened "come to my office Colonel" he said, then turned and headed off trusting that O'Neill would follow.

When the two got to his office Hammond sat down heavily "close the door and lock it Jack, I don't want to be disturbed".

Silently Jack did as he was asked and sat down.

"Did you know my Dad was in the 4th infantry division?" Jack just shook his head. "He was there from D-Day to the armistice; he was the captain for a squad of specialists, demolition, snipers, that kind of thing. One of the men in his squad was a Sergeant Evan Whately. The man was from Massachusetts and he had strange eyes, that's all Dad would usually say about him; where he was from and that he had strange eyes. Once I asked him what he meant and all he would say were that his eyes were almost yellow, like they were too old. Anyway, one night after seeing something I wish I'd never seen, I asked Dad what the strangest thing he'd ever seen was. The old man thought for a moment and said that a few days after D-Day his squad had been detailed to destroy this block house that the Germans were using as an anchor for their entire defensive network. Dad said he looked it over for almost an hour and decided that the only way to do the job was a nearly suicidal frontal assault. He was ready to give the order when the sergeant stopped him and asked permission to try something. He said if it didn't work then they'd only be out about half an hour, but if it did work then they'd destroy the thing without losing anyone. Dad told him he had half an hour but not one minute more. The sergeant then went off by himself and started setting up some stuff that Dad didn't recognize. Then he started chanting something in a language Dad didn't recognize from a piece of paper he had in his hand. The observation crew then called Dad over because something was happening in the block house. When Dad got there he could hear the Germans inside screaming and saw several of them trying to get away, but without any success. Finally the screaming stopped. No one knew what was going on then a voice behind Dad said 'they're all dead'. Dad spun around and there was the sergeant, looking old and worn out. Dad and two other men went to the block house to make sure and said that it was the sickest thing he'd ever seen. Body parts everywhere, the walls almost painted in blood and not one living thing in the whole place. Dad said he walked outside and puked his guts out. Then he found Whately and asked him what had happened. Dad said that the man just stared at him for a minute and then said 'it was something his Uncle had taught him'. Dad asked who the Uncle was and he answered that the man was a Professor at Miskatonic University. Dad said that nothing else he'd ever seen scared him as much as what happened that day; so when Jacob told Sam about going to the school, I remembered what my father had told me."

"Do you think they'll find out anything" Jack finally asked after a long period of silence.

"I don't know Jack; all I know is that I'll feel better once they're both back here."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

XANDER'S OFFICE

The conversation had been going on for some time, without any give on either side "so you refuse to believe me"?

"No, I'm asking for something other than your word that it operates the way you say it does."

"So we're back to calling me a liar."

"Listen Dr. Harris, you may be used to things that are a bit off the beaten track, but in the world I'm familiar with, physics cannot accomplish what you've claimed. So I am suggesting a demonstration with a neutral as well as a hostile observer."

"You and Dr. Jackson in other words."

"Exactly"

Xander just rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair, he thought for a moment then "fine, we'll do it your way". Then picked up his phone and hit a speed dial, all the while muttering some very unflattering things about his guest. After a couple of rings, Dawn picked up "what's up Xander"?

Shooting a look at his guest, Xander slipped into another language and replied "give him the basics and get back here, we've got a field trip to do."

"We're not taking these two on patrol are we" Dawn responded in the same language.

"No, just a little jaunt around the block."

"Fine, we'll be there in ten."

"Cool, could you pick up Faith and your sister on the way?"

"Sure, but what's Buffy doing here?"

"Ask her yourself" Xander replied then hung up the phone "alright Ms. Carter; if you would help me clear out the corner of my office, we can get started."

Ten minutes later the office was a bit crowded, Sam was working on the diagram under Xander's supervision; that way there couldn't be any accusations of trickery, while Buffy and Dawn grilled each other over their respective love lives. As for Daniel, Faith and Oz; they were talking baseball, specifically the prospects for the Red Sox, White Sox (Oz's team) and the Rockies in the upcoming year. Finally it was done as Sam stood up and looked at what she'd drawn. The pattern made her head hurt, as the combination of angles seemed to defy what she knew of Geometry.

"Alright everyone, grab hands and let's go" Xander said with fake enthusiasm.

"Where we off to X" Faith asked.

"It's a surprise" Xander replied then turned to Sam and Daniel "you'll probably want to keep your eyes open just so you don't have any questions about the trip". Then without hesitating he grabbed Sam's hand and headed towards the corner and vanished.

Daniel couldn't believe what he'd just seen "where'd they go"?

"No idea" Dawn replied, "why don't we go see". She proceeded to take Daniel's hand as Oz took the other one, and before he had time to think about what was happening they were headed towards the corner. For Daniel, there was a flash and then they were walking out of a corner and towards a large plate glass window that opened up onto a beautiful harbor. Xander was standing there with a smug grin on his face while Sam looked as though she'd been hit on the head by a rubber mallet, disbelief etched into every line of her body. Daniel saw Xander shoot a grin at the two with him and then gave a mocking bow and said "welcome to Australia".

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Three hours later, two very confused people left the grounds of Miskatonic University. Neither spoke; there just weren't words for what they'd just been through. Silently they flagged down a Taxi and headed towards their hotel; both of them hoping that a good nights sleep would help clear the cobwebs, but neither actually expected to sleep much for quite some time.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Buffy was back in Cleveland, and the four friends were watching two very confused people leave.

"I think ya broke em X" Faith observed as she watched the two leave.

"Nah, I just altered their realities a bit, that's all."

"It was harsh" Oz observed.

"True" Xander said, turning to face the man "but do you think anything less would have worked".

Oz thought for a moment, then just shook his head.

"How hard do you think they'll dig" Dawn asked, still watching to two head off the grounds.

"Very, tell Andrew to step up security and expect some very good hacking in the near future."

Dawn nodded at this, then after a moment added "you think it was smart, giving them the language?"

"Well between that and the book on Egyptian, they'll have enough clues to open some pretty big doors. We know they're in a secret operation, so they're used to being discreet. If it all goes as I hope, in less than a year we'll have a part of the government that is familiar with the hidden world. This will make the whole acceptance of non-humans easier."

"And if they decide to go 'Initiative' on us?"

Xander turned back to the girl that owned his heart "we'll have plenty of warning and can take steps to 'discourage' research in that direction; so no worries there. I'm just wondering how long it'll take Carter to figure out how to harness the energy of those things."

"Six months, easy" Faith said.

Xander grinned at her and pulled a ten "six to nine".

"You're on buddy" Faith replied, digging in her pocket for a bill.

"Under three" was all Oz said as he added his ten to the pile; and Dawn chipped in with "nine to twelve".

"Regardless, once they have it we can finally utilize all the damn things we've got" Xander said, turning away.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it when I found out we've got 6 dozen of the things, not counting what the Air Force just left with us". Faith looked around at her three colleagues "I'm starved, anyone for pizza."


	8. Fallout and Field Trips

A/N Sorry about the delay, a nasty bout with the stomach flu slowed me down. A good chunk of this chapter is based on the Lovecraft story "The Lurking Fear" which I do not own the rights to; nor do I own the rights to BTVS or the characters contained there-in. I do own the rights to a cranky old Basset hound and a crankier old Subaru, but I really can't generate any income from them either. As always, reviews are appreciated, even if they're negative (no rants please, all they do is make my brain hurt) because thats how I learn to do this better. I would also like to take this time to thank the people that have read, reviewed and placed this story on alert, you guys are great.

FALLOUT AND FIELD TRIPS

March 15

STAR GATE COMMAND

It had been a week since she and Daniel had returned from Miskatonic, and Sam was still freaked out. Freaked out to the point where she couldn't even begin to write the report about what had been discovered about the objects that they had gone there for. Freaked out because she had somehow created a portal from Massachusetts to Australia using only the corner of a room and a Sharpie marker; something Harris had insisted was simple physics. Freaked because all the axioms, formula's, laws and equations that had formed the foundation of her learning, and in effect her own personal foundation; lay in ruins. Reaved to rubble in an afternoon by someone who was just providing her proof; proof that she had insisted on in point of fact. Sam closed hr eyes and silently wished she had just taken the man's word for everything.

A voice cut into her silent recriminations "any progress Carter"? Sam didn't bother looking up, she knew what she'd see, Jack O'Neill leaning against her doorframe with a wise ass smirk on his face; pleased with catching her off guard.

"Not really sir, I get started but then it all kind of gets strange and I try and start over but it really doesn't help."

"So what was so strange, all the magic and hocus pocus and batteries powered by souls?"

"Actually no sir, I didn't have a problem with; well, not much of one that is."

"So what did you have a big problem with?"

"Well, when I asked Harris how the girl came out of the ceiling and he answered that it was simple physics. Then later he had me draw some lines in a corner with a marker and it somehow created a portal to Australia. And it was all physics, there was no magic, heck I drew the lines, I even picked a different corner from the one he suggested; just in case. But like I said it was physics, and I have no idea how it worked. I've been working on it a week and I still have no idea" Sam finished with obvious exasperation in her voice.

"Did you ask?"

"Yeah, I did; but that was one of the few things he wouldn't answer."

"You think he was lying?"

"No sir I don't and that's whats got me in a bind, I know its physics but I can't figure it out."

"I guess I'm not understanding the problem Carter."

Sam thought for a moment "OK, here's a thought for you" she started "let's say you're a hockey player in somewhere remote, like Iceland. You get pretty good and soon you're the best hockey player there. Pretty soon you kind of expect to be better than everyone else, you expect the awards and accolades. Then one day someone tells you about the NHL, and you find a lot of players that could clean your clock; and in that instant you go from being the top dog to finding out that you're not even playing in the big leagues."

Jack looked at her a moment, then to her anger he burst out laughing "you're jealous".

"I am not" she shot back but as his laughter increased she just sighed "OK well maybe I am" she thought some more "heck, I'd even go so far as to say I'm scared of these people."

This sobered Jack up fast "scared how"?

"These people are comfortable with things that I can't even begin to understand and that's just the physics; when you figure that the transport thing is pretty basic for then then you've got to wonder what other tricks do they have up their sleeves and pretty soon it's just scary thoughts."

"You think we ought to take a look a 'em, maybe shake em up with a government investigation or something like that?"

"No sir, I don't think that would accomplish anything except pissing them off; quite frankly they don't strike me as people that are afraid of the Air Force, the Government or the Goa'uld."

"Sounds like my kind of people" he got up and walked towards the door "but from what you and Daniel have told me, I hope they're on our side when the crap hits the fan."

"You and me both sir" Sam muttered and turned back to her blank screen.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

March 15

It was Spring Break at Miskatonic, the green SUV was heading west on highway 84 and had just crossed over from Connecticut into New York State when the driver, Xander Harris, cast a surreptitious glance over at the curvy brunette sitting next to him. She was dressed simply, blue jeans and a flannel button down, no make up and her hair was in a simple pony-tail; very different from her look when they had first met. Still, in his eyes, she was the epitome of beauty. There were times when he felt like the other shoe was about to drop and all of the good things in his life; the job, the friends, Faith, were going to turn sour but he was beginning to actually believe that these good times might last. He stole another glance and took the opportunity to marvel again at the fact that they were together. He hadn't really had much to do with her during the battle with the first and even less afterwards. Then when he had been sent to Cleveland she and Robin had hit a bad patch and the two of them had just clicked. It hadn't always been easy, very little with Faith was, but they had been there for each other time and again until they were best friends. Robin hadn't cared for it one bit, but by the time Faith was ready to listen to him again, there wasn't anything he could do about it. The addition of Dawn to the mix hadn't diminished their friendship at all, in fact; while running Cleveland, the three of them had seemed to morph into a single being, finishing each others sentences and knowing what the other was thinking. It reminded Xander of his early life with Willow and Jesse, only with sex. Xander smiled again and turned his attention back to the road.

Faith smiled to herself as she looked out the window, she'd caught Xander checking her out a time or two and that was fine with her. The clothes were a new thing for her, and she was still getting used to the look, but it was pretty apparent that Xander didn't mind it. It wasn't anything anyone had suggested, she just figured if she was gonna teach, she might want to look a bit more . . . . . respectable. Faith snorted a laugh, like she had ever expected to be doing something like teaching; hell she hadn't expected to live past twenty, let alone have a job or someone to love her. She stole a glance at Xander and smiled. He had been there when she and Wood had really hit the shits. At first it surprised her that Harris had been the one to find her and find out how she was doing, it wasn't like she'd ever given him a reason to give a shit about her. But after she'd gotten to know him better, well it seemed logical that he'd come looking, after all that's what he did; he kept slayers sane in an insane situation. So they'd started talking and pretty soon they were covering shit that Faith had never thought she'd share with anyone else. To be fair, Harris had been through some pretty hairy shit himself while he was growing up; that's when it hit her, he'd known that. All those years ago in that grubby hotel room he'd had a pretty good idea what her life had been like, that was the connection that he'd been talking about; and she'd gone on about wanting another taste and then nearly killing the guy. Then and there she'd vowed to make it up to him, not that she'd ever told him that, cause some things she still kept to herself; she was Faith after all, and a girl had to have a few secrets. So they'd gotten to hanging together, and then Pip added herself to the mix and for the first time Faith knew what it was to have friends, and it scared her. Friends had always meant weakness, someone the bad guys could use to hurt you. Her first instinct had been to pull away, but somehow she'd ignored that instinct and let herself become immersed in Xander and Dawn's friendship; and it was the smartest move she'd ever made. Cause that led to where she was now, driving down the road with the man she loved; not that she'd told him that yet, she was waiting till the time was perfect, but she had an idea that he already knew that she did. She didn't know where they were going, Xander had said it was a secret, but she figured it was time he dropped dime on what was up. "So where we off to X?"

"A place near Lefferts Corners in the Catskill mountains of New York."

"What, its freakin spring break and we're stayin north?"

"Yep"

"For Christ's sake why, with Dawn and Wolfie off to Hawaii, I was hopin we'd at least go somewhere warm, like Florida." She wriggled her way across the front seat and husked in his ear "don't you want ta see me in a bikini there Xand" she asked, her voice dropping an octave.

"A big yes on the last one, and as much as I'd love to see you dominate the mud wrestling competition on a 'Girls Gone Wild' video; we're gonna check out something Giles asked me to look into."

Faith sighed heavily and sat back in her seat; she knew Xander and knew that he still felt guilty about leaving the Watchers. That's why he took every job Giles sent his way. She admired his priorities, but also promised herself that she'd have a 'vigorous discussion' with the head watcher about taking too much advantage of the situation. "OK so what's the story on Bum-fuck New York or where-ever the hell it is we're going. It's gotta be weird for Giles to put you on it, but not definitely demon or we'd have slayer back-up."

"OK, but it's a long one."

"Well, from the sound of it, we've got time."

"True, well this one goes back to before the Revolutionary War, when New York had been settled by the Dutch and was actually called New Amsterdam. Well when the Brits moved in, the Dutch moved out and headed for the hills, literally. The families would settle down in the less accessible parts of the state to discourage the British authorities from screwin with em."

"Makes sense."

"Well this one family named Martense settled on a place called 'Tempest Mountain'. It was called that because apparently it attracts a lot of lightning. I checked with some geologists at the school and they say that there's a high concentration of Nickel and Iron in the rock, and that's why it acts like a lightning rod. Anyway, they holed up in their mansion and basically hid from the world."

"And inbred like crazy."

"Enough to make a hillbilly jealous, and that's when the shit turned weird. They became weird, almost less human; only coming out in the storms, staying out of the sun, stuff like that. And no one saw many of em. That's when the killings started. Homes in local villages would collapse for no reason, and not all of the occupants would be found, or if they were found they wouldn't all be there if you know what I mean."

"Could they be Ghouls or something like that?"

"I thought that, but Pickman says 'no'."

Faith shuddered at the memory of meeting the head of the Ghoul colony as Xander continued. "It was a family here and a family there, not too often and spread out so it never really attracted any attention. Then in the twenties, an entire village was destroyed and people took notice. One was an amateur investigator with a love of the weird. He was the one that noticed that all of the attacks centered around the Martense place on Tempest Mountain, so he went to check it out. He went up to spend the night in the place cause he found it abandoned, but that night both the men he went with were killed and the stuff he said he saw" here Xander paused "well, it wasn't pretty. So he backs off a little and that's when he sees it, there are these lines in the ground, like mole burrows radiating out from the mansion and he realizes that the whole lot of them were living underground."

"So what happened?"

"He left, came back a week later with a lot of men and a lot of dynamite and blew it the fuck up."

"Sounds like your kind of guy."

"True"

"So we're just going to check the place out?"

"No, unfortunately that's not the end of the story. You see, with the danger gone, well the area kind of bloomed. You had a lot of rich people from New York City building summer homes out here, and where you had rich people, well you needed caretakers and caterers and that kind of thing, so the area got a lot more crowded. There were still disappearances, but it wasn't as bad as it had been before, nothing too shocking just the occasional missing person; same as everywhere else."

"So what changed?"

"This, a month ago" Xander said as he handed her a folder. In it were newspaper accounts of a collapsed house, dead parents and missing children. Faith was almost sick after reading the coroner's reports mention of teeth marks on the bodies.

"So you think they didn't get em all the first time?"

"Yep"

"And we're gonna clean it up?"

"Got it in one."

"We got dynamite?"

"No, but we've got enough C4 to put a tank into orbit plus a few other party favors I think you'll like."

Faith glance nervously at the back of the SUV "just drive real careful."

Xander shot her a warm smile "always".

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Lefferts Corners wasn't what Xander had expected; he'd been expecting a small town of about 1500 people, not the 7500 or so that were there. He looked around as he went to check in the local hotel. The place looked like a normal small town, the kind that hadn't yet been found by Wal-Mart or Starbucks; it wasn't quite Mayberry, but it was within shouting distance of it. As he came back out, chuckling at a bad joke the manager had told him, he noticed Faith's eyes were wide. Concerned he hurried over "what's up babe?"

"There's somethin wrong here, seriously wrong. I haven't felt like this since we were last in Cleveland; it's . . . . " she trailed off.

"What?"

"In 'Lord of the Rings' where Treebeard talks about how some of the Darkness was never lifted from the forest, you remember that part?"

"Yeah"

"Well this place feels like that, like there's something ancient here, something that doesn't really do anything but corrupt whatever's near it." She shuddered "I'll be damn glad when we leave."

Xander looked at her for a moment "we could leave in the morning if you want"?

Faith looked up into his eye and realized he was serious, he was willing to pack it in on her word, and it was a word she was tempted to give, but she also knew that if they left then the killings would continue. "Nah, we'll at least check it out first, then we'll figure out what we need to do; cool"?

He gave her a warm smile "that sounds like a plan, now what do you say we get unpacked here and see what culinary delights this town has to offer" he gestured grandly towards the now blinking traffic light.

Faith just giggled at the jester in front of her and stepping out of the vehicle said "lead on lackey" while patting him on the head "I expect nothing less than a four star establishment" she concluded with a smirk and a flourish.

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The _Rip Van Winkle_ café might not be a four star establishment, but the food was still pretty darn good. 'It's amazing how good stuff tastes when you start out with everything fresh' Xander thought. Afterwards he and Faith decided to go for a walk around town; he was pleasantly surprised when she reached over and took his hand. This was something that Faith 'of the past' would have dismissed as being way too girly, but it was something that Faith 'now' really liked.

She looked around, there was something here that was setting her 'weird-o-meter' off, but she couldn't figure out what it was, heck she couldn't even localize it because it seemed to be everywhere. She looked over at the tall man next to her and leaned her head onto his shoulder for a moment. Faith could honestly say that there was no one on Earth she'd rather be with. She pulled back a bit without letting his hand go "so X, now that we're here can you get a bit more specific with the plan?"

Xander sat down on a bench and pulled Faith down with him "sure Faith" he replied, pulling out a small map and spread it out. "I've plotted the murders and disappearances since 1950 or so and just like before it seems to center on Tempest Mountain. Now the last time the guy that dealt with it said you could see evidence of the underground tunnels from Maple Hill, so we're gonna check that out first. And if it's what I think . . . . ."

"We're gonna blow it again?"

"Nope, sorry but I don't want to have to keep doing this; so if the problem is under Tempest Mountain then we're gonna go in, see how many there are then take em out. The 'blow em up' option is a solid plan B if it looks like it would be suicidal to do wm by hand."

Faith thought about what he'd just said "you sure X, that sounds kinda dicey."

"You're right, it could get ugly real quick, but I wanna take care of this once and for all and that means getting every one of these things and that means hands on." Then he gave a rather wolfish smile "besides, I think it's time someone introduced those things to some of the wonders of modern life." Then his gaze softened "and you don't think I'd seriously risk you getting hurt do you?"

Faith blushed, it was true that Xander would never knowingly put her in danger, but he might discount the danger to himself. "No, but you might have some dumb-shit notion that as long as I'm OK that you don't matter. And if that's the case then I'm gonna kick your ass so hard you'll part your hair when you fart" she shot a hard glance at him.

He grinned at her "no unnecessary risks, I promise." Then he leaned in and whispered in her ear "I plan on us being in each other's lives for a long time to come."

"Good plan" she murmured back.

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THE NEXT MORNING

The view from Maple Hill was spectacular or would have been if there had been any leaves on the trees or flowers in the meadows; but for spotting unusual features on the ground it was ideal. A quick survey confirmed that the creatures were still centered under Tempest Mountain. Walking back to their SUV, Faith asked the obvious question "so when and how do we hit these suckers?"

"Well, from what I've read, the storms somehow set these things off, so I'm thinking we wait til we get a clear day then hit em early and keep going til every last one is dead."

Faith looked a little surprised at the intensity in Xander's voice, usually she was all fired up and he was Mr. calm cool and collected, but something about all this obviously had him riled. "What's the sitch X, you sound like you've got a real hate on for these things, that ain't like you?"

Xander looked at her for a second then back at the mountain and sighed "you think we should back off?"

"Nah, I'm just wonderin where the tude's coming from."

"Africa" Xander replied and fell silent.

Mentally Faith raised her eyebrows at that; Africa was the one subject between them where Xander wasn't in full share mode. That's not to say he wouldn't talk about his year there, he was great with the slapstick stories and the garbled language stories, but he never talked about anything serious that had happened. She knew from the few whispered stories and rumors that were out there that there had been some fairly horrific situations. But whenever those stories were mentioned, Xander just shut down and refused to talk; sometimes for days. If her time in prison had taught her nothing else, it had taught her that when it came to bad stuff, sooner or later you had to talk; 'maybe it was his time' she thought. "You wanna expand on that answer a bit?"

Xander looked over at Faith, the expression on her face was simple concern, not morbid curiosity; and that was good. He'd been holding back some of the things that had happened in his year in Africa since he'd left there; even going so far as to refusing to comment on some of the rumors. He hadn't even confided in Giles about the horrors he'd witnessed or worse, perpetrated while during his tenure as Watcher. He knew it was a barrier between Faith and himself, but it was one he was reluctant to breach; not because he didn't trust her but because he wasn't sure if he could deal with all of her possible reactions. If she reacted with disgust or turned away from him, well he wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to recover. Guiltily he remembered that Faith had trusted him enough to tell him about her childhood, about what she'd done in prison and on the streets to survive. She trusted him, she'd opened herself up to him, how could he not do the same. He closed his eye and leapt "it's not pretty".

Inside he mind Faith was doing a little victory dance; he was willing to talk to her about what had happened, he was willing to reveal himself totally to her; in a nutshell, he trusted her. Now all she had to do was be worthy of that trust "hey, between growing up and prison I've pretty much seen and heard it all."

He raised a skeptical eyebrow at her and gave a little smile that held no mirth "I doubt you've ever heard anything like this, but OK." He looked away and his eye closed "I'd been over there about three months. I started out in South Africa and worked north from there, through Botswana and Zambia and into Tanzania. I'd found eight slayers by then, four had gone on to the training camp in Egypt, two had decided to stay where they were and two were with me, Makala and Sedani. We were headed to this village to check out a rumor about some super powered girl, when we came across a group that was out hunting what they said was a child snatching demon. Well being who we were, we offered to help and they let us come along. After a bit we split up and it was right after that that Sedani found their trail. We were able to track them back to their lair, but it wasn't a demon, or even demons." He sighed "it was this tribe of ……..well, I suppose they started off as human, but they sure didn't look it anymore. It was obvious they'd been isolated for some time, add into the mix the fact that they were canibals and well, decision made."

"What happened?"

"There weren't many of em, so it was pretty simple for me and the girls to subdue em and tie em up. Then I sent them away with our guide to find the other party and let em know what we'd found. While they were gone I found one of em that understood Swahili, at least well enough for us to understand each other. I asked him why they'd taken the children. He answered that the children tasted better; that was all. I just stood there, I mean I couldn't believe what he'd just said, the kids tasted better so that's what they went after, someone's son or daughter and they just looked at them as livestock." Xander fell silent for a moment, getting his composure back. "So I was just standing there and it hit me, they were just like vampires. A vampire doesn't care about the feelings or the life of whatever or whoever it's after, it just wants to eat; and that's how these things were, they were hungry and it didn't even occur to them that dinner might not want to be eaten." He stopped again, breathing hard from holding his emotions in check.

Finally Faith asked "so what did ya do?"

"I killed them all" he murmured "I pulled out my automatic and executed anything that looked to be over six years old. One by one, a single shot to the forehead and on to the next. I herded up the few that I'd left alive, then burned the damned place to the ground" he snorted "afterwards I got very drunk."

"I didn't think you touched the stuff" she asked surprised. Actually the question was a delaying tactic. She couldn't believe what X had just told her, executed an entire village of cannibals; SHIT, that was heavy duty.

"That was my first time, unfortunately it wasn't my last. But I've never had any since I left and I don't plan on it either."

"So why'd ya do it" Faith asked after taking a minute or two to think about what he'd said. She didn't have to clarify what she was asking about.

He sighed "a long time ago I had to kill my best friend; afterwards I promised myself I'd do anything I could to prevent anyone from having to go through what his parents went through. If one family doesn't have to know the pain of losing a child because of what I did, then as far as I'm concerned, it's worth the price."

"Could the cops have done anything" she didn't know why she was playing 'Devil's Advocate' right now, hell she probably would have done the same thing that he did; never-the-less, she felt like she needed to take this one all the way.

"Over there" another snort that was almost a laugh "maybe they would have put the men in what passes for jail over there, or just executed em, but that would have left the women and the older kids alive."

"So why was that not an option?"

"Because it wasn't what they were doing, it was their way of thinking. Like I said before it was the way a vampire thought and it …….. offended me. They weren't about to change, so I eliminated the threat."

"Offended you" she asked "what the hell do you mean by that"?

He turned to look at her, his eye blazing with passion "I know there's evil in this world; I've spent over half my life fighting it. And when a demon does bad things or tries to end the world it's just being a demon. That doesn't mean it gets a pass but at least it has an excuse. But humans messing up a world that doesn't need any help is just so wrong on such a fundamental level that it sets me off. Now usually I'm in control, but these things that used to be people acting like vampires, well I just didn't see the need for control."

Xander finished talking and Faith just looked at him. She understood why he'd done what he'd done, and the truth was she'd probably have done the same thing. She'd always known that Xander had an edge that most people never saw, but until now she just never realized how hard that edge was. "You were still in control" she said finally.

"How can you say that?"

"If you weren't in control you would've wasted all of em and not bothered saving the kids." She turned back to look at Tempest Mountain. "You said you wanted to hit em early on a clear day" she gazed at the clear sky "any chance of a storm today?"

Xander realized that the subject of what had happened was now closed, and he was shocked at first. The he realized that Faith had only asked for an explanation, he'd provided one and now it was settled. Giving a tentative grin he said "it's supposed to stay nice all day; you thinking about doing a little exterminating?"

"She turned back to him, a smile on her face as well "I don't know, you got the tools we need?"

"And a few we don't. So you want to go hunting Ms. Lehane?"

"Absolutely Dr. Harris."

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They made two calls on their way over to Tempest Mountain. One was to Giles, explaining what was going on and what they were gonna do about it. At first he asked them to wait for a strike team from the Council, but Xander told him that they'd give it a go first, and if there were too many that they'd back off and wait for back up. Knowing that this was as good as he'd get, Giles backed off and simply told them to be careful. They also called Buffy, simply to let her know what was about to go down and to tell her where the information was if needed and to come get them if she didn't hear back from them in twenty-four hours. Just as Faith was hanging up, they broke out into the clearing that used to be the Martense Mansion. Quickly they started exploring the mound of debris that was left over from the explosion over eighty years ago. Xander figured that the old house would have some kind of talismanic meaning for the creatures and that there would be at least one tunnel that opened in the area. It didn't take long for him to be proven right, and an entrance was found near what would have been the main fireplace back when there was still a house. They located the opening but didn't expose it all the way; hopefully they could achieve a bit of surprise and be able to pick off the creatures one by one. They headed back to the SUV where Xander opened up the back and started kitting himself out from the arsenal that was there. He ended up with two silenced .45's and an MP-5, also silenced; a nice assortment of grenades and a Kukri, just in case. Faith had her usual assortment of knives as well as a broadsword and an MP-5. Both had night vision goggles, but Faith figured her own slayer enhanced vision would do well enough. They went back to the tunnel opening and in a few minutes had it large enough for Xander to fit through; then after a brief kiss for luck, Faith went in. Xander counted five and jumped in after her.


	9. Notes From The Underground

NOTES FROM THE UNDERGROUND

March 17, 10 AM

It was a short drop to the floor of the passage; Faith's legs took the impact easily enough and she rolled clear. It was then that she heard it, a furtive scurrying; almost silent. She turned to look for the source and she saw it, or rather she saw a flurry of hair, teeth and claws. She tried to pull a knife, but it got caught in the lining of her jacket, she tried to tear it loose and brace for the impact at the same time, but it never came. A shadow had blotted out the sunlight that was coming through the opening, followed by a thud and a sickening crunch.

"EEWWWW, gross."

Faith glanced back to see Xander standing over, and in whatever had been coming at her; he was looking at his hand with disgust. "I think ya got him there stud."

"I think that whatever passed for his brain is now all over my hand" he replied, shaking the grey matter off his defiled appendage. He stood up and took a good look at the creature below him. "Well, it looks like they're brittle boned, that's a plus."

"Yeah, but they're quick and damn near silent" Faith replied "we'll need to be sharp. She looked at the tunnel, so which way?"

Xander thought for a second "which way is giving your 'spidey-sense' the biggest twitch?"

Faith paused and checked it out; finally she turned to her left and said "that way".

"Then that's the way we'll go"

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WATCHER'S RESEARCH CENTER, LONDON

10:30 AM Eastern Time

Giles looked at the different piles of papers on his desk, he needed to deal with all of them but somehow he couldn't get the conversation he'd had with Xander out of his mind. There was something there that was tickling a memory, something about the Catskill Mountains; that he just couldn't put his finger on. With a sigh he picked up a report on demonic activity in Brazil, Giles was soon lost in the data, the Catskill Mountains forgotten, at least for now.

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UNDERNEATH TEMPEST MOUNTAIN

11:10 AM

A whisper of air, and a knife buried itself in the chest of a creature. As it died it looked up to see a dark haired woman with her arm extended, then it saw no more.

Faith and Xander came forward slowly; checking to make sure that the little bit of noise generated hadn't attracted anything else. Reaching down to the body, Faith pulled her knife, wiped it clean and put it back in its sheath. She hated this. When she slayed, the bodies either dusted, or if they were demons, turned to some sort of goo and dissipated; she wasn't used to having to look at her kills. Combine that with her slayer sense being at a constant 'Def-Con one', Faith felt like she was slowly going crazy, she just hoped to wrap this up before she went 'around the bend'. This place didn't help things either, it was a maze of tunnels, intersections and small rooms; she felt like she was slaying in a Habbit-trail.

She felt a hand on her arm; she looked up to see Xander looking intently at her, his eye focused on her face. Without words she knew he was asking her if she was OK. Faith gave a little smile and nod and leaned into him for a moment; it was nice to lean on him just for a moment. Silently he slipped his arms around her and pulled her into a light hug, trying to re-assure her without words, trying to let her know how much he cared and to let her know that if she wanted to back out now, that this was still an option. Faith held the hug for a moment or two, then backed off and smiled a thanks to Xander. Xander dipped his head and blushed a little, then pantomimed that he would take the point for a while and let Faith watch their backs; he could tell that killing their quasi-human opponents was taking a toll on Faith, and he wanted to ease her burden a bit. She thought for a moment, then nodded. Xander gave her shoulder a squeeze, lowered his night vision goggles til they covered his eyes, and he headed off in the direction they'd been going. Faith stood there a moment, relishing the lingering warmth of Xander's hug, then she pulled a pair of throwing knives and started off after him, her eyes moving constantly, ready for anything.

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WATCHER'S RESEARCH CENTER

11:40 AM Eastern Time

"Andrew, what the devil's the matter; you've been fluttering about for fifteen minutes now?"

"Sorry Mr. Giles, I was just wanting to get everything done early so I could take some time off."

"Whatever for?"

"There's a comet that's supposed to hit Jupiter tonight, it's supposed to be really spectacular."

Giles looked at the young man with a bit of surprise "I didn't know you had an interest in Astronomy."

"Well…..its ummmm…….kind of a new thing" the young man stammered out.

"I see" Giles said with a bit of a grin "you have a friend with an interest in the subject."

Andrew blushed "he's getting his Master's from King's College."

"Well enjoy yourselves and the comet…..comet….bloody hell, that's it" Giles exclaimed and hurried out of the room. Andrew just stood there, wondering what had just happened.

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UNDER TEMPEST MOUNTAIN

11:55 AM

Xander knelt and took careful aim, he moved as silently as he could because the one thing that he'd learned about these creatures was that their hearing was phenomenal. The thing he was currently drawing down on was gnawing something that looked like a leg, and generating a lot of sound doing it, but he figured 'why take a chance'. Gently his finger caressed the trigger and the deadly old Colt spat. The creature dropped without a sound, its skull shattered and brain scrambled. Xander glanced over his shoulder to see if Faith needed any help. She was busy checking the shadows behind them to make sure they weren't surprised. She caught his eye, gave him a little smile and nod and went back to checking their six while Xander went ahead to see what there was to see. 'What a surprise, more tunnels' he thought as he moved past the body. Actually it was an intersection of four tunnels. 'OK, which way now' Xander wondered as he waited for Faith to join him. Finally Faith came up to him, moving as silently as a slayer can, he saw her checking the different tunnels, then she looked at him. He could only shrug, hoping that she could point the way. Her face was puzzled for a moment, then it cleared and she pointed without hesitation, second tunnel on the left. Xander nodded and was about to take point again when she grabbed his arm and pointed to her ears. Xander thought for a moment, then nodded in understanding, Faith could hear them. 'So now it gets interesting' he thought.

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WATCHER'S RESEARCH CENTER

12:15 PM Eastern Time

You'd think that a new archive would be fairly well organized, but sadly that wasn't the case. The New Council had so many books, scrolls and various paraphernalia coming in over a very short time that some of it was just shoved into files, to be sorted when leisure permitted. Those were the files that Giles was going through right now. He was looking for a map, a map that shouldn't exist and one that no one had ever been able to determine the origin or significance of it. It had come from the private collection of a Watcher who could trace his lineage back to the Roman Senate and had been stored in a remote "safe vault" so it was unaffected when the First blew the Watcher's up. Giles had seen the artifact once, and it had made quite an impression. He was about to give up on the file he was searching when he noticed a square of parchment hanging out of another file. He plucked the thing out and unfolded the parchment. A lot of things went through his mind when he saw what was there, but they all could be summed up in "Oh, dear". According to the carbon dating they'd done, the map was over 10,000 years old; however it somehow showed the continents in their modern configurations. On the map were 28 X's scattered all over the continents and the oceans. So far as anyone could determine, there wasn't any physical pattern to the placement of the X's. One leg of each X was marked with the Sanskrit word for traveler and a date; in the margin of the map, someone had written that the 'traveler' was obviously Halley's Comet. The other leg was unmarked, but it was believed to have something to do with the moon; twenty eight days being a lunar cycle after all. Giles looked at the scattering of X's on the map; several he knew: Sunnydale, Ayer's Rock, The Deeper Well, Devil's Reef off the coast of Massachusetts, Machu Pichu, Easter Island and Mt. Fuji. But there were others that were mysteries to him: somewhere in the mountains of Antarctica, in the Pacific near Tahiti, the heart of the Amazon basin and the middle of the Saudi desert. But the three that interested him the most were Pompeii, Krakatau and one in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Giles knew the real story of Pompeii, every Watcher did; a slayer in ancient Italy found a temple to some unknown Gods. Seeing that the place attracted demons, she went about destroying the temple. Blaming what had happened next on Mt. Vesuvius was quite a stroke of genius, even if the volcano hadn't been the center point of all the destruction. He suspected that Krakatau was a similar situation and if Xander caused something like that to happen in an area surrounded by so many large cities then the loss of life might exceed twenty million; not to mention the damage it would cause to the planet. Realizing that he needed to contact Xander, Giles was reminded of the static and distortion that accompanied Xander's previous call. Giles would try and get him on the phone, but he realized that he needed a back up system, just in case. Pulling his phone he started to dial.

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"Hey Giles"

"Buffy, thank heavens."

"What's with the dire Giles, I thought the Apocalypse meter was pretty low these days?"

"Indeed, however even the most trivial of event can radically change the status quo if it occurs at the wrong time."

"Uhhhh, once more in English please."

She could hear his heavy sigh over the phone and just for a second she was back in the Sunnydale High library "yes, things are quiet right now, but that could change quickly if someone does something stupid."

"See, much clearer; why didn't you just say that the first time?"

"How silly of me, please excuse my good grammar and extensive vocabulary."

"No prob, now; who's gonna end the world?"

"Not the world, but a significant portion of the Eastern United States, and the who is Xander."

"WHAT, I thought he was chasing some kind of mutant cannibal under New York."

"And so he is, but what he doesn't know is that under the mountain is a temple to the Old Ones."

"You mean something like the Deeper Well?"

"Exactly, and this is Xander we're talking about, what will he do when he finds an evil temple?"

"Knowing Xander, he'll blow it up."

"I agree, and there-in lies the problem; the last time someone destroyed a temple of the Old Ones, a large portion of Italy was destroyed."

"Vesuvius" Buffy said, fear making her voice husky "what's the worst case here Giles?"

"The worst case is the total destruction of Buffalo, Albany, New York City, Philadelphia, Erie, possibly Hartford and numerous smaller towns. Not to mention the extreme climate change from all the debris in the atmosphere. I would say 40 million isn't too crazy a number."

"So what do you want me to do" Buffy asked, her voice was almost robotic as the extent of the threat sank in.

"As he is currently under the mountain his phone is inoperative and given the nature of the area my guess would be that phone service is dodgy at best so I need you to go there and make sure that he doesn't destroy that temple. You do know where it is, don't you?"

"Yeah, he called and gave me the low down before he went in."

"Excellent, how soon can you be there?"

"Ummmm about five hours if I drive."

"That's not fastenough, can you get a plane or something?"

There was a bit of conversation then Buffy replied "I think we can rent a helicopter fairly cheap."

"Money is not important right now Buffy, just do whatever you must to get there as quickly as possible."

"OK Giles, we're on it" she said and hung up the phone. Immediately she started barking out orders to the watchers and slayers there, she just hoped they'd be in time.

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UNDER TEMPEST MOUNTAIN

1:30 PM Eastern Time

Xander could hear it now, the background murmur of voices, bodies moving and things being done. He knew they were approaching the main gathering area for these creatures; the sound was all the proof he needed. It had been slow going, but he wanted to make sure that there were no surprises left behind them and that had meant checking out every room and alcove along the way. His Colts were both warm from use as he had taken the burden of killing on himself to spare Faith the necessity; but now he reluctantly waved her forward because if he could hear them, then they could hear the sound of the automatics, even if they were silenced. With a grim nod of understanding, Faith took point and they started off again towards the sound.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

IN THE AIR ABOVE EASTERN OHIO AND WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA

1:45 PM Eastern Time

Buffy looked around her and tried to ignore the deafening noise. She was riding in a helicopter with Alistair, Cassie and Jerry (Jerry was from Zimbabwe and since no one could pronounce his name correctly they just called him Jerry) headed for Tempest Mountain. She looked over at Al and asked "how did you get this thing on such short notice?"

Alistair smiled at her "take a look around for a second, do you see any windows?"

"Nope"

"That's because this guy handles travel for well to do vamps; I persuaded him that helping us out was in his businesses best interest."

"Darn, that means that there was threatening and I wasn't there to do it."

"That's OK, if this thing goes south then you should have plenty of threatening to do."

"Yeah but it'll be threatening Xander and seriously threatening a friend isn't nearly as much fun as scaring monsters."

"True"

"So what do we have in the way of a plan?"

"Well it's pretty straight forward; I figured we could buzz Tempest Mountain first, if Xander's car is there then we land and Jerry and Cassie wait at the car while we go looking. If it isn't there then he'll likely be on Maple Hill, that is the place he said you could see the evidence from, right?"

"Yeah"

"So we'll head over to Maple Hill, find him and make sure the Eastern US doesn't go sky high."

"Simple, I like that."

"OK, we're about two and a half hours out, get a nap if you can" he said and handed her some ear plugs.

Buffy fitted them in her ears and leaned back in her seat, she hoped Xander would listen when if they had to tell him to stop, but he always was stubborn when it came to giving up something he wanted to do; and Xander did like blowing stuff up.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

UNDER TEMPEST MOUNTAIN

2:00 PM Eastern Time

Faith was waiting as Xander eased up next to her. Right in front of them was an opening into the main living area. The opening was situated above the floor of the chamber, and both of them could see the earthen ramp that led down and away. Trying to remain in the shadows as much as possible, they both eased forward and took a good look. The room was big, but that was mostly vertical space. The area of the floor was fairly small, about the size of a basketball court. The whole thing was lit by a glow that was coming from a structure built into one side of the cavern. To Xander it looked like a temple, it was just too elaborate and ornate to be something more mundane; and the darn thing was glowing like a firefly. The light cast showed the two that there were about fifty creatures on the floor of the cavern right now, but more were showing up all the time. Xander wondered at this until he noticed a web of energy make its way down the wall and into the temple. Soft and far away he heard a booming noise and he realized that weather prediction or not, it was storming up on Tempest Mountain. He remembered from the story that he had read how storms worked these creatures up into a frenzy and figured that the sound of the storm was calling them to the chamber. He also figured that whoever had put the temple there had created the mountain around it so that it would attract storms and the natural energy from the lightning would be a constant source of power for whatever went on in there. He motioned to Faith and the two of them crept back into the darkness. Putting his mouth next to her ear he whispered "we can still leave if you want to."

"Nah stud, we've come too far to go back now; besides, these things need killing."

"True, but I could do it and you just watch my back, you don't have to shoot if you don't want to."

She shot him a look of gratitude, but at the same time her face hardened "I'm a Slayer, it's what I'm supposed to do Xander, so if you're pulling a trigger then so am I."

"OK then, I say we give the storm another five minutes to get everyone here, then we pop up and say 'hello'." He opened up the bag of grenades "here, take a few party favors".

"Thanks, I will" Faith replied, reaching into the bag "but I want it officially known that you are a dork."

"I think that's pretty much common knowledge these days."

"Maybe, but I want it officially in the records somewhere."

"Fine, I'll write a memo; now, before we get all happy with the explosives, try to keep em away from the building, OK".

"Why, I figured you'd want to drop that first thing."

"Nope, I saw lightning running into it, and I don't want to blow something up that's been collecting energy for God knows how long without a real good reason, or some distance."

"Cool then, no blowing up the building just yet."

Xander pulled his MP-5 around, released the safety, checked the clip and set the gun for three round bursts. Faith did the same but set her gun for full auto; after all she was strong enough to handle it on that setting. Giving each other a smile and a quick kiss for luck they both pulled pins on grenades, stood up and went to war.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

CONDO NEAR OPANA POINT, MAUI; HAWAII

9:30 AM Local Time; 2:30 PM Eastern Time

After a ringing for thirty seconds, the phone finally produced some results. The bed covers rustled and a rather bleary blue eye appeared to glare at the offending implement. The eye was attached to a tousled head of brunette hair and an almost elfin face. The face at the moment though, looked more homicidal that elfin. Finally coming to the conclusion that whoever was calling wasn't giving up, Dawn reached over and answered the phone "this had better be damn good."

"Morning Dawnie, sorry to disturb you but it is kinda important."

"Buffy, what's going on, I can barely hear you."

"Sorry, it's the helicopter we're in; real quickly, do you have some way to get in touch with Xander other than the phones?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well you all work together in that weird place, did you all do some kind of mutual telepathy or something like that?"

"Nope, why?"

"We just need to get in touch with Xander or Faith and they're out of phone range at the moment; Al was hoping you or Oz might have some way of reaching them that we didn't know about."

"Why do you need to get in touch with them?"

"Well, there's this possibility that Xander might just accidentally blow up the entire Eastern United States, or at least a good chunk of it. So we were gonna try and stop him cause, hey we kinda need the country in one piece."

This last statement finally cut through the fog in Dawn's brain "how could he possibly do something like that?"

"According to Giles there's this temple whosits under that Temper Mountain or wherever and Giles thinks it's the same kind of temple that set off Mt. Vicious in Italy way back when."

Taking a moment to translate what her sister had just told her Dawn realized what was going on "you mean there's a temple of the Old Ones under that mountain, and Giles is afraid that if Xander destroys it then the whole region might go up?"

"Yep, so there's no way you can get a hold of him is there, cause this is very much of the dire.

"Sorry Buffy, we've got nothing here."

"Dang" then the voice changed "well enjoy yourselves there and tell Oz that I hope he learns from his mistakes or we'll be having a nice little chat, Slayer to victim."

"He knows, and if something like that did happen; you'd have to wait your turn cause I'd have first dibs."

"I know; sorry I woke you Dawn and have fun."

"Bye Buffy and good luck."

"Thanks" and the connection was broken.

Dawn sank back into the covers and snuggled back up against Oz, who had slept through the whole call; but she couldn't go back to sleep, and she couldn't manage to get warm again."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

UNDER TEMPEST MOUNTAIN

2:45 PM Eastern Time

It hadn't really been war; it was more of a slaughter. For all their agility and speed, the creatures just weren't able to avoid or shrug off gunfire the way demons and vampires could. The grenades had taken a fearful toll, and what was left after that, well the MP-5's finished up. It had helped that the creatures only seemed able to attack, the notion of running just didn't seem to be wired into them. Five minutes after the first grenades had been thrown, Xander and Faith were down on the floor of the chamber; Faith looking for any clan symbols on the bodies and checking out the temple from the outside while Xander finishing off the wounded. Quietly he moved up next to her when he was done. She turned to him, noting the slightly haunted look on his face "so what do you think X"?

Hearing the question, Xander looked up at the temple and replied "I think we need the C4 from the car."

Faith looked at the carnage around her "well at least it'll be quicker getting there and back than it was getting down here the first time."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

ABOVE LEFFERT'S CORNERS, NEW YORK

4:20 PM Eastern Time

They had circled around Tempest Mountain and hadn't seen anything but some ruins. Buffy thought she saw some tire tracks down there, but she couldn't be sure. Now they were headed for Maple Hill, and having a little trouble because the GPS had started going wonky once they had come close to the mountain. Finally they had the right direction and were making top speed in that direction. Buffy was tense, she could tell that it was gonna be close and she didn't want to think about what would happen if they were late. "Got em" Al called out from the co-pilot's chair "a green SUV with two people next to it".

"Get us down there now" Buffy called out over the intercom as she opened the side door. There they were, she could see Xander fiddling with some sort of boxy contraption as Faith just looked on with a bit of a grin on her face. 'It won't be in time' Buffy thought as the chopper swooped in and with that in her mind she jumped, even though they were about thirty feet off the ground and moving fast. The impact hurt like nothing she'd ever felt before, even a hit from Caleb hadn't so completely totaled her. But the urgency of the situation spurred her on and she rose up and headed towards her two friends.

"B, you OK" Faith called out.

"Not really, but I will be" she called back, then looked up to see the looks of concern on both their faces. Faith was looking at her with a curious expression on her face. On Xander she could see the expression of concern turn to one of relief when she'd said that she'd be OK."

"So what's with the stunt dive" Faith asked.

Buffy ignored her sister slayer for the moment and asked "is that a detonator Xander"?

Xander just held up the boxy thing in his hands "you mean this"?

She nodded and he just grinned "Yep" and before she could do anything else, to her horror; he pushed the button.

Buffy heard a muted 'thump' and saw dust and dirt rise from a few odd places on Tempest Mountain, but that was all. "We're not dead" she said after a few seconds "why aren't we dead".

"Ummm why should we be dead B"?

"Because Captain Dynamite there blew up that temple under the mountain and it was supposed to then blow up a lot of stuff" she replied, very confused.

"I didn't blow up the temple Buff; I just sealed off all the tunnels that led to it. Come on, yeah I'm a little explosion happy but I'm not stupid."

"So you recognized what the heck it was" Buffy asked, the relief at not being air pollution coming through in her voice.

"Actually Faith pointed it out, and we figured we'd just seal it off and if we needed to we could come back and finish the job."

"Well, that's a relief; Giles was pretty frantic about the whole thing" she looked down "actually I was too". She had to speak up at this point because the helicopter was landing near them. Al, Cassie and Jerry came over and Xander explained the situation "how about we head into town and we'll explain everything over dinner"?

"Sounds good" Alistair replied, then gesturing to the helicopter "you two want a ride."

"No thanks" Faith said "we'll take the scenic route".

"You mind if I come with you" Buffy asked.

"Not a problem B" Faith said.

The three lapsed into a comfortable silence while the others headed back to the helicopter and it took off.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

He had found them, the butcher's that had killed his clan and sealed off the temple. He would follow them, then find as many of the clan that had survived and exact their revenge. He waited for the noisy thing to head back into the sky, wanting to use the noise to hide his movements. As it began to rise he stole a look back at the defilers over his shoulder and did not understand what he was seeing. The golden haired one had her arm pointed to where he was; then there was a sharp pain in his head and he knew no more.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The three walked over to where Buffy had thrown her knife. In the undergrowth they found one of the creatures with the knife sticking out of it's forehead. "Nice shot B".

"Thanks, is this what you all had to take care of?"

"Yeah, about eighty of the damned things".

"Gross" the blond slayer said as she pulled her knife out of the corpse.

"You're tellin me, it was dark and nasty and my slaydar was pinging big time."

"I've found that chocolate helps in situations like this."

"Well, they've got milk-shakes at the diner near our hotel" Xander offered.

"That sounds good, then you can tell us about what happened and we can celebrate not being blowed up, and stuff ourselves silly all at the same time."

"I like the way you think B" Faith replied as they all got into the SUV.


	10. A Modest Proposal

A/N As always I'm overwhelmed by all of the response thie story had generated. I appreciate all of you that have taken time to read and or review my little tale. Right now I'm honestly not sure how much further this story will go, I mean I've got two more chapters outlined and started, but beyond that I'm not sure; so sit back and enjoy as Xander makes ...

A MODEST PROPOSAL

Administration Building, Miskatonic University

April 18

Randolph Carter was nervous. It wasn't obvious, he was too good at controlling himself for it to be apparent, but it was none the less true. As he read through the budget report he stole a glance at the source of his discomfort; only to have the man drop an impudent wink back at him. Actually it wasn't the man that had him on edge; it was the conjunction of the man and the monstrosity of a chair that he was sitting in. Carter had no idea how the chair had gotten there, to the best of his knowledge the room had been locked and his secretary hadn't been out of the office. He looked back at the budget report and figured that he was better off not knowing how it had gotten to where it was. He had seen the chair before, many years before; Abner Whatley had used the thing on a regular basis. He had asked some of the older faculty members if they knew where the thing had come from or what it was made out of, but no one knew anything beyond rumor. Carter could tell that he wasn't the only nervous one in the meeting; several of the department heads were sweating and casting furtive glances at the chair and its occupant. It was as though everyone could tell that something was coming, like a storm; but no one knew what it was about or how bad it would be. Finally the budget report was done and Carter looked at the gathered men and women "any questions". Silence was the reply. He hesitated, sorely tempted to adjourn the meeting right there before whatever was coming had a chance to occur; but he didn't. "Any new business?"

There was a moment of silence, then "I've got something".

There was a collective hiss as the faculty members recoiled, afraid; for some unknown reason, of what was about to come. "Dr. Harris".

The man in question leaned forward, he was immaculately dressed in a navy blue pin stripe suit that was clearly custom tailored and included a matching eye patch. "I noticed in the budget report that the overall revenues were down for the third year in a row, but that a crucial level had not yet been reached; is that correct?"

"It is"

"Then I would like to make a suggestion as to how we reverse our financial situation."

"And that would be" Carter could see the other's faces wincing involuntarily as the awaited the answer.

"Expand the range of students admitted."

There was a moment of silence and then a rush of sound as breaths that were being held were released in relief; there was even some relieved laughter. "But how do we do that" asked Dr. Prescot of the History department "we have no restrictions on race, gender country of origin or sexual orientation, what other population is there?"

Xander gave a little chuckle "as cliché as it sounds, I'm glad you asked that" he straightened up "the population that I'm suggesting we appeal to is the non-human population."

There was nervous laughter as his words sank in, then Laughlin, the Chemistry head spoke up "that's absurd, are we to admit chimps, dogs and dolphins now?"

"Actually no" Xander said with a grin that didn't reach his eyes. He then proceeded to pull a stack of file folders from his briefcase which he then distributed around the table "this was prepared by my staff and should explain things adequately".

A ponderous silence reigned as the various department heads slowly opened the folders, each one acting as though they were dealing with a barely sub-critical mass of Plutonium. Eventually mutters and gasps of surprise were heard as the various men and women read through the report and were introduced to a world that they didn't even know had existed. Each was looking at the other, wondering who would speak, wondering what there was to say; finally the Dean of Students asked "this is real, not some sort of elaborate practical joke"?

"No sir, this isn't a joke. This is a way to attract an untapped portion of the population without only a modest outlay of funds. I realize that this …….. revelation is quite a shock, however it is indeed a way to solve our financial dilemma."

"And how did you learn of these things" Laughlin asked.

"I've known about them since I was fifteen, so it's obvious why I'm a bit more comfortable with this than you all however I am serious in suggesting that this population would be a tremendous addition to our school."

"But monsters . . .. . ."

"Not monsters" Xander cut in firmly "people like any one of us, just the biology is different. They live in the same country; they want many of the same things, peace, security, a chance to thrive and a better life for their children. Think about this, a little over one hundred and fifty years ago the same discussions were being held at schools concerning the admission of African Americans. I don't see how this is any different."

The silence that followed that statement was finally broken by Michael Stebbins, the chair of the Communications department "this is ridiculous, the school is in trouble and we're listening to this lunatic as he conjures up fairy tales to help us out. Non-humans indeed, and all we've got is the word of a man that ought to still be doing his post-graduate work, not heading a department of dubious value that these things even exist, report or not; there isn't anything in here that couldn't be faked."

"Are you calling me a liar" the question was quietly delivered but it cut through the room like a knife.

Stebbins belatedly realized what he had just said, unfortunately the damage had been done, and now he looked down the table to find himself pinned in place by the gaze of a furious brown eye. Darkness seemed to spill from the gaze, like a void overflowing and right then Stebbins knew just how dangerous the new faculty member was. He immediately began back-pedaling "I'm sorry if I gave that impression, it is simply that all of this goes against everything I've ever learned so I'm not as comfortable with it as yourself. I do not believe that you are lying to us or deceiving us in any way, however I would like some time to consider other options before taking this rather radical step."

Xander held the man's gaze for a moment more, then nodded his head in acknowledgement of the apology "I understand your difficulty, and indeed it is a radical step, however I do believe that it is or soon will be a necessary step." He turned to face Carter "there is no need to push the issue now, but I do think it is a course to seriously consider in the near future; until then if any of you feel that you would like more information, please feel free to contact myself or any member of my department."

"Very well" Carter said after a moment of silence "I move that we table Dr. Harris' suggestion for the time being, with the understanding that it will be discussed in the future." The motion was seconded and passed and the meeting dismissed. "Dr. Harris, might I have a word with you before you leave?"

"Certainly Dr. Carter" Xander replied and then waited till the room cleared.

As soon as it was just the two of them Carter asked his question "why is this so important to you?"

"Do you want the whole truth?"

"Of course"

"Then this might take a while. You see a few years ago, before I went to college some friends of mine and I were part of a war …………….. so with all the active slayers out there, its only a matter of time before the hidden world isn't so hidden any more. When the truth finally comes out it's gonna be open season on anything non-human and that would mean wiping out a bunch of beings that would be pacifists at the worst and allies at the best; unless something can be done to change the mind set of the people; because I don't plan on being on the loosing side when the shooting stops."

"And having these beings enrolled in a college just like everyone's sons and daughters would go a long way to achieving that."

"Yeah, it'll make the humans stop and think before they do the whole mob thing, and it'll create some useful contacts between the humans and non-humans."

"As well as pulling the school out of the financial pinch it's in."

"Also a consideration"

"And it would bestow a tremendous amount of prestige on you and your department."

"I never said I was an altruist."

"No, you never did" a pause "thank you for your candor, and your suggestion."

Standing and picking up his briefcase, Xander held the gaze of the President for a moment "thank you for giving me this chance."

"One final thing" Carter asked as Xander reached the door "what's to prevent someone that was here from releasing the information you gave us to the press or the government?"

"Magic" Xander replied, then seeing the look on Carter's face he continued "I had a geas cast on the folders that would prevent the information being told to anyone that wasn't here, and if it's shown to anyone that wasn't here, well all they'll see are blank pages." Carter looked a bit dumb-struck, so Xander took the opportunity and said "good night Dr. Carter" and quietly left the room.

Carter nodded once as Xander headed out the door; then he went back to his office, locked the doors and pulled out some papers that might shed some light on what was to come.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Dawn and Oz were standing on the cracked sidewalk in front of a dilapidated house that stood on the border between the residential and commercial areas of Boston. It was obvious that the house wasn't currently occupied, the boarded up windows were the first clue, and it seemed as though even the homeless shunned the place.

"What's here" Oz asked the tall brunette.

"Well I was doing a search on cases of multiple homicides, seeing if there was some sort of demonic influence or that kind of thing when this address came up a lot of times."

"Oh"

"Yeah, at least four times in the last hundred years there has been a multiple killing at this address; and that could go up because I haven't even searched before 1900. Anyway, the first was a wife killing the husband, then her family, then herself. According to the reports the marriage seemed to be happy and stable before she picked up the cleaver. The place was deserted for a while, then occupied by several families over the years with no reports of anything unusual, then in 1935 the family that lived here had a cousin that stayed with them; one night the cousin kills and dismembers the family. He was caught trying to burn up the bodies in the fireplace; apparently the smell of the burning bodies offended the neighbors and they called the police. After two years the house was torn down and the area was re-zoned for commercial use. When everything was finished a bar stood here. Like before, there were a lot of years where nothing happened; then in 1952, the bartender went crazy one night and killed all the patrons with poison then put the bodies out of sight and proceeded to shoot anyone that walked in. Eventually 21 people died. He was captured alive, but he managed to hang himself in his cell that night. After the dust settled the property cycled through a lot of different businesses, again without incident. After a while the area was re-zoned for residential again and the houses came back. This particular house was built in 1985 and two years later a" here she glanced at her notes "Steve Mullins killed his daughter and the five other girls that were having a slumber party to celebrate her 11th birthday; he slit all their throats."

"Was he captured?"

"No, the wife" another glance at the notes "Donna, emptied a .38 revolver into his chest from a distance of five feet."

"Yuck"

"Right there with ya, now all of the cases have some interesting commonalities. No prior history of violence or mental instability, or any of the other indicators suggesting that violence was likely to occur. This can happen on occasion, someone snaps and there ya go, but for it to happen four times at one address is statistically impossible."

"Ah, so?"

"Well, I figured that since everything seemed to happen in the basement, we'd sorta stake the place out with the usual equipment and see if something comes out to play."

"If nothing?"

"Then I file it away until something happens here again."

"Keys?"

Dawn gave a furtive glance and pulled out a leather wallet that she opened to reveal a set of lock-picks "never leave home without em" she said with a wan grin.

Oz just smiled and Dawn extracted a couple of tools and went to work on the padlock currently gracing the front door. "How'd you learn" he asked quietly.

"Spike taught me originally, but I've kept current since then" and with a final twist, the lock sprang open. Dawn opened the door with a flourish and a "ta-daaa".

"Quick" was all Oz had to say on the matter.

"Thanks, you wanna go ahead and scout us out a place; I'll get the stuff out of the trunk."

"Cool" Oz muttered as he moved into the deserted home. His biggest fear was that they'd find an inconvenient nest of vampires or something equally as nasty inside, but there wasn't anything that suggested anyone, human or otherwise, had been in here for some time. But despite the visual clues he was immediately on high alert, something was wrong here, very wrong. He could feel something tickling the edge of his senses, constantly causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up. He stood there in the entrance hall, trying to figure out what it was and where the threat was, but he just couldn't localize it. He was still standing there when Dawn tapped him on the shoulder. Oz yelled and jumped about four feet then he landed and spun around, breathing hard.

"Stealthy" Dawn joked.

"Sorry"

"Everything OK?"

Oz just shook his head.

"What is it?"

"I really can't describe it, it feels like there's a cloud here, violent…….evil……malevolent" he shook his head again "none of those are quite right."

Dawn put down what she was carrying and hugged the obviously distraught young man "you OK?"

Oz gave her a wan smile "no, but I will be."

"You sure, I've got no problem with leaving if you want."

His gaze softened "I'll be fine".

Dawn held the gaze for a moment longer, then said "if you're sure then, how about helping me get this junk set up and then you can sack out on a couch or something while I take a look at the really old history of this place."

"Sounds good" Oz replied and later he fell asleep to the sound of fingers tapping keys.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Haasen's wasn't the finest restaurant in Boston, but it was in the top ten. What made it so special was that everything on the menu was pretty darn good, whether it was seafood, pasta or steak. Melville's had better seafood, but the pasta was almost inedible, The Craftsman Chop House had better steaks, but trying the seafood was an invitation to have your stomach pumped; Lentini's had the best pasta in town, but if you ordered a steak you'd better be prepared to loose a tooth.

They were a very attractive couple, her brunette hair cascaded down her back in waves until it touched the sea green cocktail dress she was wearing, her cupid bow lips were pursed in a small smile and her warm brown eyes sparkled with mirth. He was a trifle less striking, but only just with his immaculately tailored suit and whimsically matching eye-patch. The eye you could see was chocolate brown and warm with the kind of wrinkles around it that you got from smiling a lot. He was well built and moved with an economy of motion that belied his rather staid image. It was obvious to their waiter and most of the patrons that they were a couple in love.

"So how'd everything go at the faculty meeting?"

"Pretty well, all things considered. By the way, the chair was an excellent touch, nice idea there."

"Thanks, I thought it might help create the right mood."

"It scared the shit out of most of em, so I'd say mission accomplished."

"The Undertaker wanna talk afterwards."

"Yep"

"You tell him the truth?"

"Yeah I did."

"Everything?"

"No, not everything; I just told him that a conflict was coming and I was doing what I could to gather allies."

"And he bought that?"

"Sure, it is the truth after all."

"Yeah, but you left out the part about how you and the University would be the central players in the whole thing."

Xander looked a little embarrassed "I didn't want to freak him out any more than he already was."

"Sure X, as long as you believe that."

Xander leaned forward and took Faith's hand "what do you say, no more work talk tonight, just us."

Faith leaned forward with an almost predatory grin "now that sounds like an idea."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Oz had no idea what woke him up, he was asleep one moment and awake the next. He didn't move though, he just opened his eyes, trying to figure out where he was. The first thing he saw was Dawn, hunched over her laptop, a worried expression on her face. At that instant his head seemed to explode, as though his brain were on fire, and when the feeling was gone he looked at Dawn again. He knew he was going to have to take care of her soon, after all Willow had cheated on him, he had cheated on her, Xander had cheated on Cordelia; it was inevitable. Oz wasn't going to wait around for Dawn to stray, no this time he'd be more……….proactive. He closed his eyes but didn't go back to sleep, images of Dawn's punishment raging in his mind.

'This isn't good' Dawn thought as she checked through old copies of the Boston Herald. It seemed as though there had been violence here for as long as people had lived in the area. The records were full of beatings, murders, homicide, fratricide, suicide; the violence was almost always within families or at least a group of people that were emotionally close, that was the only commonality she could find. As to the root cause, she was thinking something along the lines of a spell that sowed discord or a demon that interacted on this plane to feed. She couldn't think of any other reason for the pattern of behavior that was documented. She looked over at Oz, she'd have to wake him soon, there was something that she was missing and a fresh brain would help immensely. It had surprised her at first that they had ended up together, since they seemed so different; but Dawn knew that those differences were only the surface clutter, down where it mattered she and Oz were almost identical. In the way they felt, in the way they approached life, in their approach to other people. He was truly her other half. Sure, Buffy had kicked up a fuss when she'd found out, but the older Summers sister really didn't have a leg to stand on and Dawn quickly reminded her of that. Willow had been shocked as well, but over all had been pretty laid back about the news; Dawn figured it had to do with the whole moving to India thing, the Wicca was searching for inner tranquility and seemed to be making progress. With a sigh Dawn turned back to her computer, she'd wake Oz up in a half hour, right now she was gonna see if she could trace the property back to the original owners, that might shed some light. She was so intent on this that she completely missed the faint yellow mist that seemed to come up out of the floor and settle around Oz's head.

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"……so then all three of us rear back and throw em as hard as possible, and for once all of us hit what we were aiming at. Unfortunately we didn't know that the house had been sold and the new owners were in there doing an inspection. So Jesse's rock breaks an upstairs window, mine hits the porch light, and Willow's flies through the same window as Jesse's and hits the new owner right in the forehead."

Faith just sat there, listening to Xander regale her with stories from his childhood. It helped her in a way to realize that despite the shit that he'd dealt with at home, he'd had a pretty normal childhood, or at least moments of normality.

"So rather than run we just stand there frozen, then the owner comes storming out and immediately Willow tries to explain, well you know Will, pretty soon she's babbling and the poor guy can't understand a thing she's saying. He finally started laughing and told us to go home. It was quite the learning experience."

"What did ya learn; not to throw rocks at houses?"

"Nope, we learned that if we got nailed, just let Willow do the talking and whoever would be so baffled by her babble that they'd forget what they were mad about."

"I bet" she paused "can I ask you kind of a touchy question X?"

"Sure"

"How come you and Red never got together?"

Xander sat back and sighed "that's pretty complicated, but if you really want to know I'll give it a try." Faith simply nodded in reply and Xander took a moment to collect his thoughts.

"Well, to start out with I've known Willow since I was five, so I just thought of her more as 'Willow' then 'Willow the girl'; but once I did start to notice that she had girl parts and all, well so did Jesse. It created a strain in our friendship for about two months, then I found out that he was writing poems about Willow."

"Poems?"

"Yeah, fairly sappy love poems; but when you're eleven, well he tried, I'll say that for him. Anyway, it was clear that he was a lot more interested in Willow 'that way' then I was, so I backed off."

"But Red told me he was always hitting on the cheer-girl?"

"True, he was and that was my fault."

"Huh?"

"I knew that Jesse had fallen really hard for Willow, but that Willow was crushing on me; so I figured if she saw Jesse hitting on Cordelia, someone we all hated at the time, then she'd become interested in him because she'd be afraid of losing him. Willow can be very possessive of people she cares about. Unfortunately it wasn't working, at least in terms of getting Willow's attentions shifted from me to Jesse, but we at least had some fun with it. We'd try and predict what Cordelia would call him, how many times she'd use the word loser, that kind of thing; heck Jesse even had a notebook where he'd write down some of the more creative things she'd say. So to kinda sum up, I knew Willow was interested, but Jesse had loved her more so I backed off, and after he was gone, well it just felt wrong if you know what I mean. Like making a play for the widow of a relative ….. or something like that." Xander paused for a moment then went on "it also kinda bugged me how she'd never talk about him you know, like after he was dead, it was like he'd never been alive, at least to her."

"That musta been weird, knowing so many people that died."

"It was, but in a way it taught you to hold on to the friends that you had. I also think that's why Willow was so gaga about me being 'fray adjacent'. I was the one big constant in her life, even more than her parents and I don't think she could have handled me being gone for good. I think that's also why she was so down on anyone I dated, she was afraid that they'd 'take me away' from her."

"I dunno, it sounds kinda sweet."

"It is in a way, but not when it isn't a mutual decision. This was all 'Willow decrees it will be thus' and that's the end of the discussion. You know me, I wasn't gonna stand having decisions made for me and I guess that's what kept us apart."

"Do ya love her?"

"Til my dying day I'll love her, but I'm not in love with her; I don't think I ever could be."

Faith just nodded at his response, so Xander followed it up "how about you, anyone in your past that you loved like that?"

Xander watcher her for a moment, Faith's childhood had been the one 'out of bounds' conversation topic with her, just like Africa had been with him. He'd finally opened up about Africa in hopes that she'd finally start talking about her pre-slayer days.

Finally "nah, no one like that. I had some good buds but Ma moved a lot so there wasn't a chance to really get to know anyone and by the time she finally settled down, well friendship wasn't what they were interested in."

"That must've hurt."

"It did" she finally replied "but for me that was just how life was; I adapted."

"It just made it hard for you to trust anyone."

"That's true; I mean even now there's you, Wolfie, G, maybe this Al guy that B's so hot for, you're the only guys I really trust. And even with you guys I'm afraid that one day you're just gonna move on and leave me hangin'."

Xander leaned across the table and took her hand "what if I promised to never willingly leave you, would that help."

"It wouldn't hurt" Faith replied, giving his hand a light squeeze.

"OK then" he said and reached into his coat pocket with his left hand, pulled out a box, flipped it open and slid it across the table "Faith, will you marry me?"

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Dawn's fingers' flew over the keyboard, what she was finding was bringing everything into focus. The original owners of the property had been named Pudeator. One offspring of the family was named Ann and she had been hung as a witch in 1692, what if she had tried a demon raising or summoning. Dawn knew from Giles' recounting of the whole Eyghon mess that sometimes demons returned to where they'd originally been summoned to feed again. That would explain the periodic nature of the violence that had occurred here as well as the perpetrators having no history of violence. It made too much sense. She decided that it was time to wake up Oz and see what he thought of her conclusions. She turned to him but as she did a low growl started from his direction. Her eyes widened as he stood up, seemingly larger than he had been, with eyes a sulfurous yellow. As Dawn was backing away she noticed something strange, there was no extra hair and his body wasn't re-configuring, this wasn't the wolf coming out when it shouldn't, no this was something else. The truth hit her immediately, it wasn't the wolf it was the demon they'd come to investigate. There was a brief flair of relief when she figured out what was up, this was quickly dispelled though, by the realization that she still had a possessed boyfriend to deal with. Dawn knew she could banish the demon, that wasn't so hard; getting him to sit still for the whole banishment ritual, now that was gonna be hard.

"Bitch" it said "stay still and take what's coming to you".

"There's nothing coming to me, I've done nothing wrong."

"Of course not, that's what they all say; I have called down vengeance on thousands and they all claimed their innocence, why should you be any different."

"So what is it I've done" Dawn asked as she gauged her chances of making it to the door.

"Cheating, just like all of them before you, the shell I currently inhabit cheated, as did his girlfriend, as did many acquaintances of his; just as you will, it is inevitable."

Dawn stood up straight and blinked, that last bit sounded very familiar "you sound just like Anya, except for the whole gender thing".

"I don't know any Anya."

"How about Anyanka, does that name ring a bell?"

All the while Dawn had been moving about the room, the demon currently possessing Oz wasn't gonna let her get near the door, but it wasn't coming straight for her either, apparently it was one of those that liked to play before the kill. Desperately she was searching for something, anything that would help; so far except for the distracting talk she was coming up blank.

"You know of my counterpart?"

"Sure, she lived in the same town as me after she became human."

"Indeed, it is terrible what happened to her, she had so many millennia of avenging wrongs ahead of her, and then she goes from being the patron of scorned women to being a scorned woman herself; ironic isn't it."

"Yes, very; so you're the patron for scorned men?" At the demon's nod she continued "so how did you come to be tied to this place?"

"A rather delicious story actually" the demon said, a savage mirth lighting up its face. "A woman whose husband had strayed attempted to summon Anyanka to her. Unfortunately her husband knew of the arts and changed the spell so that she summoned me instead" the demon chuckled "the look of surprise on her face was truly priceless. She just stood there trying to figure out what had gone wrong; even as I slaughtered her she just stood there puzzling."

"Well, that's how you got here the first time, but the times after that?"

"As I said the husband knew of the arts, but he was as much of a novice as his wife, so he didn't properly banish me, rather he doomed me to come back to this place periodically" then the demon chuckled "the first time it happened, I took my vengeance on him, other times there have been other suitable candidates for what I have to offer, sometimes there was no one here and I left." It gathered itself "now I've enjoyed our little chat, but I believe that I owe you some discipline" and with that it sprang.

At that moment Dawn was thankful that she'd been sparring with Faith lately, because it allowed her to see the attack before it came, and thus she was able to dodge it. As the demon inhabiting Oz's body lunged at her, she was able to crouch down and let fly with an elbow strike into the meaty part of the thigh; it was an injury that would slow the thing down without doing permanent damage. Dawn knew that no matter how much her first strike had hurt the demon, she had no real chance going hand to hand with the thing, she needed a weapon and she needed it now. Unfortunately the demon wasn't giving her time to either search or think as it lunged again. In the middle of her duck and roll Dawn noted that her strike hadn't slowed the thing down much at all. As she stood she caught a glimpse of something that gave her an idea, an idea that would let her walk out of here alive. Unfortunately the idea caused her to hesitate and that hesitation resulted in her being tackled. The demon was on top of Dawn and after a brief but vicious struggle was straddling her torso. Dawn was frantic, she almost had what she needed but the monster wasn't giving an inch. With a sadistic grin on its face it wrapped a hand around her neck and started to squeeze.

Dawn didn't panic, somehow in the struggle she had gone past panic, her mind was clear and she knew exactly what she had to do. Hoarsely, she managed to get out "come on Oz, I know you're in there, you beat the wolf, you're not gonna go belly up to this wanna be, are you?" She could see the struggle on the demons face and for a moment the yellow came out of its eyes and more importantly, the hand on her throat eased its grip. As soon as she felt the grip loosen, Dawn wriggled just enough to get her hands on what she'd been aiming for.

As the demon turned back to its prey, having dealt with the moment of rebellion, its world turned a brilliant white. Reflexively it covered its eyes trying to assess the damage and in that moment, Dawn struck. Smashing the heavy camera into the demons head, hard enough to make it loose consciousness without doing too much damage (she hoped). As it slumped to the floor, she sagged with relief, then after this momentary respite, she got up and went looking for some duct tape so she could secure the demon until she could banish it properly.

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It had taken more time than she'd wanted it to, and Dawn had been forced to be creative with the spell ingredients; but it was worth it to see the tension leave Oz's body as she finished the incantation. She looked down at the man she loved "you OK now"?

"Yeah, headache but yeah."

Dawn gave a little grin at his reply and started the rather tedious and slightly painful task of letting him go. She'd used a lot of duct tape because she really didn't want to have to fight him again, she didn't know if Xander's camera could take another pounding like that. As soon as he was free Oz stood and pulled Dawn into a hug. The young brunette returned it, but soon she could feel Oz stiffen and pull away slightly. She knew that he remembered what had happened and was feeling guilty about what had been done in his body. She eased back and looked him in the eye "it wasn't your fault, remember the demon was one geared to men, so of course its gonna go for you."

"Shoulda fought harder" he managed to say as he looked away.

Dawn turned his head back so he was facing her "you fought when I needed you the most, and it bought me the time I needed. So I don't want to hear any argument, remember we work together, you can't be saving me all the time."

Oz smiled at his girlfriend "you're right".

"Of course I'm right" she responded promptly.

Realizing that silence was the best response to that one, Oz looked around at the room and said "we should clean up, it's gonna be light soon."

Dawn looked at the shambles around her "yeah, thank God there's no class today or I'd be the one falling asleep and not my students."

Oz just chuckled and together they started putting the basement back together.

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Xander didn't know what had woken him up. Rolling to his right he found himself spooning a smaller, softer body. He smiled as he inhaled the unique spice and musk scent that told him it was Faith next to him. Without opening his eyes, he knew that the light was on and she was awake. "You're looking at it again, aren't you" he asked around a mouthful of hair.

"Uh huh" was the languid response.

"Why, I promise it's real."

"That's what I was wondering."

"Huh" he asked, cracking his eyes open.

"I keep thinking I'll wake up without this thing."

"Why?"

"Cause I wasn't supposed to ever get anything like this" she said, waving the ring around until it caught the light. "I was supposed to live hard and die young; I never planned on living long enough to even think about something like this. Cause that was the deal, get in as much living as you can before your ticket gets punched but you don't have to worry about shit like taxes and babies cause you won't be alive long enough for anything like that to happen. I mean if you go by the old Watcher's statistics, I should have been in the ground ten years ago, not teaching students and thinking about my wedding." Her words drifted off as she stared at the ring on her finger. "Girls like me ain't supposed to get a ring."

At this Xander sat up "that's crap Faith, the way I figure it, you're just like everyone else. I mean sure you haven't been Mother Teresa, but everyone has got stuff on the minus side of the ledger that we need to atone for; that doesn't mean we don't deserve a little happiness on the way. I mean just because Deadboy had the whole 'brooding king of pain' thing going for him doesn't mean that it's the only way to atone for past mistakes." He lowered himself until he was looking right into Faith's eyes "I honestly can't think of anyone that deserves happiness more than you, and I'm honored that you're letting me be a part of that" his head dipped in and he planted a feather light kiss on her lips. As he pulled back he could see the gleam of tears in his fiancé's eyes.

"You're serious" she said with a touch of wonder in her voice.

"As I've ever been".

"And you really want to ……."

"Faith, no one else on this Earth could make me as happy as you; so yes, I really want to."

Faith's smile practically lit up the room and she raised herself up and planted one good and hard on Xander. When they both finally came back up for air, a lazy grin worked its way onto her face "fess up Harris, you just slipped me a ring just so you could finally get into my panties."

Grinning himself at her tease, he leaned forward until his breath was tickling her ear "been there, done that; lover-girl."

Faith gaped for a second then she let loose with an outraged "WHAT" and rolled Xander over until she was straddling him. There was laughter then there was love; lots and lots of love.


	11. How to Win Friends and Influence People

A/N I am truly sorry for how late this chapter is, but a small bit of writer's block and that trixter life interfered. As usual, if you recognize anything, it's not mine (I can only wish it was). I appreciate all of you who have taken the time to read and/or review my story; thanks. Well, that's enough out of me, enjoy...

HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE

Miskatonic University, April 21

"So that's basically how the meeting went, any questions" Xander asked. He and Faith hadn't seen Dawn or Oz over the weekend, so Xander was catching them up on what had happened, and he was learning about their little adventure as well.

"Do you think they'll go for it" Dawn asked

"Not immediately, no; but I'm willing to bet Buffy's shoe budget that this time next year we'll be actively recruiting."

"That soon, why"?

"Because unless things take a serious upturn, they'll have to dip into the endowment funds next year to cover the budget short-fall; that's a first for this place and it'll shake em up."

"No chance we'll have to shut the doors is there?"

"Nah, the endowment fund is huge, but the precedent of using it to cover the operations budget will force the board to re-think how things are going, and we'll get our shot then."

"So what kind of ground work do we have to lay before they give this thing a try?"

"Well there's a couple of things; first I want to hire Clem as a graduate assistant……."

"Graduate assistant, you mean he's got a degree" Dawn asked incredulously.

"Yeah, BA in History from Washington and Lee."

"How'd he manage that?"

"Correspondence courses and on-line stuff, anyway the other thing we need to do here is get the students ready, so in class for the rest of this year and next we'll emphasize how there are different types of demons and how some of them are just folks with different biology. That should make things a little smoother the year after. Now as long as we're talking ground work, there's something else we need to consider."

"That is" Oz asked.

"Getting governments ready to accept this, because as much as we don't want to admit it, one school isn't gonna change some senator's mind."

"I can't believe you're actually suggesting that we talk to the government, don't you remember the Initiative and what they did. You've gotta know that there are still people all around Washington with that kind of mentality."

Xander held up his hands in a calming gesture to try and head of hurricane Dawn "I remember very well what they were capable of, but we are gonna need friends in high places if this is to work. Now to do this properly I'm gonna need your help Dawn."

"What do you need me to do Xander?"

"I want you to do a search for the right kind of people to tell; in all the major powers and in countries where there's a lot of demonic activity."

"OK, what am I looking for?"

"We need someone who's well connected and high enough to influence policy but isn't a politician. I want a pro, someone who's doing a job not running for re-election and who knows how to keep his or her mouth shut; oh, and no journalists either. We don't want to become some side-show that's used to sell papers. Take a couple of weeks and see if you can scrape up three or four in each country; if you can, we'll see about approaching them."

"I'm still not sure about this X; I mean I wasn't there for the whole Adam fun and games, but government is government and we can't afford to have this blow up on us."

"True, but if this is gonna work we'll need more than just a campus full of students, we'll need someone who can represent us in Washington and the other capitals, someone they'll listen to." Xander looked at his three companions "I don't like it either and I wouldn't be pushing this if it wasn't necessary; but I honestly don't see any other way."

"I know Xand" Faith said, taking his hand "but you gotta admit our contact with the government hasn't been too hot over the years."

"True enough, but I still think this is something we gotta do; I mean if you all have an alternative, I'm willing to listen; but we've gotta do something, OK"?

Three head shakes was all the reply he got and the others got up to leave as he went back to the pile of tests that were on his desk. 

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Xander was still deep into grading tests when he heard someone clearing their throat. Looking up he saw Dawn leaning against the doorframe to his office and smirking at him. "What's up Dawn"?

"Took you long enough Xand, I was there for at least five minutes."

"Sorry, I was marveling at some of our students' rather inventive bullshit."

"Tell me about it" she looked around quickly "you got a minute or two"?

"Sure, have a seat and tell me what's on your mind."

Dawn eased into the room and shut the door, after that Xander noticed her muttering something that didn't sound like English.

"What's with the mojo?"

"Just a little noise dampening spell, you don't mind do you?"

"Nah" he said, leaning forward "now what is it you don't want Faith to hear?"

For whatever reason his correct guess shook Dawn up so much that she lost track of what she'd wanted to say and now was just sitting there; mouth opening and closing like a landed trout. Ever since Faith had shared her letter, Dawn had known that this moment would come, and she'd been preparing for it. But now that it was actually here, it was proving to be much harder than she'd anticipated. She closed her eyes and bowed her head and tried to find the inner calm that Oz had been helping her with; once she had it she opened her eyes and looked back up at Xander. "So, you and Faith, huh?"

"Yeah" Xander replied "I mean I know it isn't exactly a bolt from the blue, but considering our histories, it wasn't a given either. What do you think about it?"

Dawn hadn't been expecting that question; it took her a moment to shift her mental gears "I'm scared actually".

"Why"

"Because if things start to go south with the two of you, then I'm afraid I'll get stuck in the middle and have to decide which of you I'm still gonna be friends with, and I don't want to lose either of your friendships."

"I see" he paused "do you think we're making a mistake?"

Part of her wanted to scream 'YES' while jumping up and down, or maybe while jumping the desk and putting him in a lip lock but in her heart Dawn knew that she and Xander were never going to be anything other than friends; so she suppressed that part of her brain and considered the question. Did she think the two were making a mistake, after all; neither of them were the poster kids for healthy stable relationships but at the same time it could be said that they had needed time to mature before they were ready for something like marriage, she certainly knew that was the case for Faith. This thought brought another question up, was Faith, the original wild child, ready for s steady monogamous relationship; heck, was she able to have a steady monogamous relationship. When they'd been in Cleveland the three of them had been so tight that it was scary at times, almost like they were three bodies sharing one soul and one mind, but now Dawn found herself excluded because she wasn't able to use the damned book and a rift had opened up that hadn't been there before. But there was no rift between Faith and Xander, and to be honest the rift between them and Dawn was pretty darned small. Dawn realized that mentally she was still running in circles, so focus; did she think Xander and Faith were making a mistake……… "no, I honestly can't see either of you being with anyone else. Faith has so many trust issues with guys that I could only see her with you, Oz or maybe Giles; and you are friends first with so many of us that I could only see you expanding that for Faith or Buffy. So given those realities I suppose that this was inevitable." Xander looked at her for a moment, his eye glittering with something; she didn't know if it was mirth, anger or something in between "what"?

"Did it hurt to say that" he asked.

Dawn started to give a rather nasty reply, but she saw that he wasn't being mean, he was honestly curious; taking a breath she bit out "yeah, it did". She looked into his eye and asked what she'd never had the nerve to ask before "did you ever wonder about …….."

"You and me, yeah I did; quite a bit actually. The first time was when you were about thirteen; your mom was giving me a hard time your crush so I told her that if I was still un-attached when you turned eighteen then I'd be a lucky man. She just gave me the most stunned look I've ever seen from her and then she started to get all red, like she was gonna just kill me and I was getting real nervous, but then she took a breath and said that if that occurred then she wouldn't stand in the way. Honestly it was the best compliment I've gotten in my life and even though I wasn't serious when I said it, I started thinking about it later that night and I was really liking where the old thought process was going. So that was always kind of buried back in my sub-conscious, but it would surface every now and again. But then something would happen that would push the notion back down. I guess over the years the thought just stopped coming back, despite what a beautiful woman you are, and I don't mean just in looks. Honestly if something happened to Faith and Oz and you and I ended up spending a lot of time together than I could see myself falling for you pretty easily, but I honestly don't think we were ever meant for that; call it fate, rotten timing or whatever, but I don't think we were meant to be."

Dawn had been surprised that Xander had even considered her in that way, let alone had the nerve to say it to her mother, but reluctantly she was forced to agree with Xander that they were just never meant to happen "that still leaves me in the middle if the shit hits the fan between you and Faith."

Xander leaned forward, looking a bit angry "do you honestly think that either of us would stoop to making you choose sides if things go wrong". He snorted "I know we're not perfect, but I'd like to think that we're a bit past High School tactics."

Dawn cringed in her chair a bit, Xander was right, there had been the inevitable disagreements when the three of them were running Cleveland, however, none of them had ever let it interfere with their friendship; that had actually been one of the rules there, right up beside 'Don't Die' and Dawn felt a little small for forgetting that. "Your right Xander, I'd forgotten, it's just the whole idea of you and Faith gives me the wiggins, I don't think your making a mistake, but I do think it'll take me a while to get used to it."

"Fair enough" he said, and then an evil smirk bloomed on his face "you wanna be here when I tell Willow; I could put it on speakerphone and we can listen for her to pass out".

Even though she didn't want to, Dawn laughed "are we gonna place bets on how long before she does?"

"I don't see why not".

"Then count me in" she stood and taking a step forward hugged Xander close and kissed his cheek "you be good to her Xander, cause you'll get no sympathy from me if you screw it up."

Xander gave her a smile "if I do screw it up, you think she'll leave anything to be sympathetic for"?

"Probably not" Dawn said after a pause "I guess that's a pretty good reason to make sure you treat her right." And with a kiss on the other cheek and a lingering thought of 'what if' she walked out of his office and back to her own.

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SGC, April 30

Samantha Carter looked calm and relaxed, but it was a façade. She was getting ready to try a power source that shouldn't work, supplied by people who shouldn't be able to do what they did and controlled by nothing more than phrases in a language that Daniel was still learning; at the moment Sam was so tight that if someone were to cut a loud fart, she'd jump four feet in the air. She had finished the unit about forty eight hours ago, and after a long sleep, facilitated by Janet; and now they were trying it for the first time. Sam leaned forward and flipped a toggle "OK Daniel, turn it on."

Daniel Jackson just nodded, then muttered a phrase in a language that few humans had ever spoken, then he left the lab; he found the whole process fascinating, but what he really wanted to do was to return to Miskatonic. Daniel had rarely found people that were at his level, it made things tough at times because no-one could really understand his point of view; but now he knew where such people were and he longed for more contact. 'Maybe I can take some leave time' he thought as he headed up to the control room.

Sam barely acknowledged Daniel's arrival, she was too busy looking at all the readouts; they were unanimous in saying that everything was working normally. She turned a dial "power usage at 20 percent" she said, checking monitors the whole time. They had hooked the supply unit up to some equipment that just pulled a power load, while this was happening the scientists were monitoring ambient temperature, how swiftly the unit reacted to changes in demand, and of course, how much it could supply. Sam was taking her time because she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Despite the increasing load, there was virtually no temperature change in the room, the unit wasn't losing any power as heat, the reaction to change was virtually instantaneous, and finally the unit was showing no signs that it was running out of juice any time soon. Finally she couldn't justify running things for any longer, so she shut the experiment down. The entire control room had kind of a 'Holy Shit' attitude going; no one could believe what they had just witnessed. In the midst of all the congratulations Daniel walked over to Sam and whispered "so what are we willing to trade for more of those storage units"?

Sam looked startled but then quickly slid into thoughtful, it was an important question; it would be interesting to see what kind of answer her superiors would supply.

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Miskatonic University, May 5

"So is that the list Dawnie dug up for ya?"

"Yeah" Xander said listlessly.

"So what's the problem" Faith asked as she sat down.

Xander sat there for a moment, trying to put what he was feeling into words, finally he said "I know that this is something we need to do, and when we were just talking about it I wasn't worried, but now that I'm looking at a list of the people we're contacting, well it's just a lot more real all the sudden and…….."

"And now you're not as sure as you used to be"

Xander just nodded.

"Honestly X, I don't see what the rush is?"

"It's just that the more friends in high places we have, the easier everything will be; and God only knows when the whole hidden world wont be so hidden. So I figured the sooner the better; but now I'm not so sure."

"Why not?"

"Well these are some powerful people with incredible resources, what if they decide to make their careers by having us taken or something like that" he held up a hand to forestall Faith's protest "I know that all of these folks were picked for their integrity, but power is a great tempter."

"And you're afraid that one of us might get hurt during the whole thing?"

Xander looked down at the desk "if it was just me, then I'd do this in a heartbeat, but I can't stand the thought of you or Dawnie or Oz getting hurt because of my decision, not to mention any of the slayers, watchers or even helpful demons."

"What the fuck X, we put it on the line every day, or at least we did till we came here, and the slayers are still putin' it on the line. And even while we've been here we've dealt with some hairy shit. Hell, life is just a risk, as for this" she gestured at the list "I figure riding in a car with B driving is a hell of a lot riskier than telling some muckety mucks that demons are real and people fight them."

Xander looked away in embarrassment "I suppose".

"Tell ya what though, if you're having the heebie jeebies because of this, then do a test case."

"Huh"

"Pick out the guy you think'll give us the most trouble, and if we deal with him OK, then we tackle the rest."

Xander nodded once, then stood and leaned across his desk and kissed his fiance "I knew there was a reason I loved you so much" he muttered in her ear. "That's a wonderful idea."

"Cool" Faith replied "now you pick out the unlucky bastard, and then we'll figure out how to rock his world with the least amount of risk."

"Now there's a plan I can get behind" then he looked back at his desk "Oh, and we've got some other business to attend to as well."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

SGC, May 5

There was a brief flare of light, and suddenly there were people where people hadn't been just a second ago. Nothing was said, but quickly flashlights were turned on and the lab was examined, equipment photographed and written records copied. Not wanting to find out if security had been improved since they'd been there last, the two intruders quickly drew a pattern in the corner in chalk, as soon as the corner was glowing the taller of the two placed an index card on what they'd photographed and the shorter one left a small box on the floor. Mission completed, the two left through the glowing corner; thirty seconds later the 'erasure' spell that had been put on the box activated and the pattern was hopelessly mired, the light in the corner went out, but almost immediately the light in the lab turned on, and men with guns were bursting in the door.

Sam had been alerted about the break in almost as soon as it happened. As she stalked down to the lab, the other members of the command saw her face, and parted like the Red Sea. She nearly ran into the lab, swearing vengeance if anything had been damaged. "Report"

"Not much to report major, nothing seems to be missing or even out of place. We've got some chalk lines in one corner and a card on a piece of equipment and that's it. The explosive that triggered the alert was so small that it caused no damage. Honestly I'm surprised that we were able to detect it." 

Sam just nodded in acknowledgement as her eyes scanned the lab, she grimaced a bit when she caught site of the corner, those were the kind of lines she'd expected and guessed that the charge was used to wipe their tracks. Cautiously she walked over and picked up the card, the message was simple "we have more power sources; feel free to open negotiations at your convenience." The card was emblazoned with the crest of Miskatonic University.

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Miskatonic University, May 6

"OK Oz, can you just kinda bottom line it for those of us who are not one with the math."

Oz grinned at his friend and said "well from what I could tell, three dozen of those things should handle all of their power needs for a hundred years. Now that is assuming that NORAD is the only one we're talking about, otherwise we're clueless about what they'll need."

"Cool, well we can spare that many, so what I need from you all is a list of what we want for those things."

"Why don't we just give em to em X?"

"They'd never trust us if we just gave em away, this way they'll figure that we're getting something out of the deal and will leave it at that."

"So what is it we really want?"

"The plans for the power converter of course, anything beyond that is gravy, but we need a big enough list so that doesn't stick out."

"You don't think that'll stick out?"

"Not compared to some of the stuff I'm gonna ask for." He looked over at Faith "like a honeymoon on another planet, you get the idea."

Understanding the direction he wanted them to go in, the three others all got introspective looks and matching grins.

"Now" Xander said, pulling everyone's attention back to the here and now "I figured we'd do first contact tomorrow morning, so everyone be here at six thirty, ready to go; any questions?"

This was a topic they'd discussed quite a bit, and none of them had anything to add.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Langley VA, May 7

Dr. John Patrick Ryan really liked his job. The recently appointed Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency enjoyed the challenge of hunting down the troublemakers in the world and stopping them before they disturbed what little peace there was in the world. In a way he was still doing the same job that he had when he first arrived at CIA, but now he had access to more sources of data, and more assets to deal with what he found. The only regret he had was that as one of the highest ranking intelligence officers in the world, he really wasn't ever surprised anymore. He closed the door to his 7th floor office and just had time to realize that maybe he should re-think that opinion as the stun gun hit him.

Ryan realized that he must have lost consciousness because the next thing he was aware of was realizing that he'd been duct taped to his chair and that four undertakers were lounging around his office. Well undertakers were his first impression, there were four people dressed in Edwardian style black suits but none of them looked either old or cadaverous. There was a short man with some rather shocking blue hair, two brunettes; one tall and willowy, the other shorter and curvier and finally there was a man with dark hair and an eye patch. Ryan figured he was the leader because he was the one that started talking when he noticed that Ryan was awake.

"Good morning Dr. Ryan, sorry about the stun gun, but we wanted to be sure that we wouldn't be interrupted during our little chat. Let me assure you that you're in no danger, my associates and I are only here to have a private conversation, then we'll leave."

"About what?"

"An area that we believe you need to be made aware of; and even though some of the information concerns domestic issues, there are serious international implications; that's one reason we're here and not the FBI."

"And what is it that I'm not aware of?"

"A population living in this world, one that is un-acknowledged and ignored by authorities, but one that could cause a world of havoc with their revelation."

"Really, and why are you making me aware of this now?"

"We'll get to the whys in a minute, right now we need you to focus on the what"; he gestured to the slim brunette. She stood and started towards his desk, her voice was young and vibrant, but the tone was one of old knowledge "the world is older than you believe, and contrary to your Catholic upbringing it didn't start out as a paradise …….."

Ryan looked around his office, trying to dismiss what he'd seen and been told; unfortunately his eyes kept coming back to two things, a crowbar that had been bent into a pretzel and an open folder. It was easy to call these people lunatics, so long as he ignored the evidence in front of him and that was one thing he couldn't do. A large part of his meteoric rise at CIA had been his sense of the truth, his ability to be able to tell if a piece of information was bogus or not and right now that sense was telling him that these people had been completely straight with him. He looked up into the rather sardonic gaze of the leader "this is a lot to take in."

"Yeah, it is; and we don't expect you to buy this right off the bat. But a guy with your resources should be able to back check a lot of it, you should be able to find the right rocks to turn over" he smirked even harder "there's a few in that five sided building down the road. The one thing I will ask is that you don't go looking for these things, not unless you're with a couple of us, or with a squad of armed infantry."

The blue haired guy stepped forward "when you want to know more, call us here" and he handed Ryan a plain card with a phone number on it, that was all. 

"So what happens now" Jack asked.

"Now we leave" the one eyed man replied. He turned back to Ryan "one other thing, if you show the information in that folder to anyone else, they won't see it; it's been magiced."

"What will they see" Ryan asked intrigued despite himself.

"Whatever you'd find most embarrassing without being illegal; a Britney Spears fanboy scrapbook, or a catalogue for bondage wear, that kind of thing. You see we trust you and only you right now" he turned back to look Ryan in the eye "don't make us regret that." He turned and moved towards the corner.

"I'll be curious to see how you get past everyone."

"Who said anything about using the doors" the sultry brunette asked. Ryan could see past her that the willowy girl was drawing something in a corner of his office; his attention was pulled away from that when he heard a "snick" close to his ear. He turned and blanched at the sight of a rather large switch blade in the sultry girl's hand. "Be cool, I'm just gonna loosen ya up some, can't have you tied to the chair all day, could get messy" she said as the knife sawed most of the way through the tape holding his right arm down. As she moved away he started to struggle with the bindings, only to be distracted by the sound of a small explosion. He looked around, all four of them were gone, and the diagram that they'd drawn in the corner was mostly obliterated. He sighed and sagged back in his chair for a moment; he'd talk to John and Ding about this they might know about stuff like this, and get the techies to see if they could back track the phone number or pick up any physical evidence. But first he had to get loose.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Cheyenne Mountain, May 7

Jack O'Neill had had enough and seeing his face, the SGC personnel parted like the Red Sea as he stalked towards Hammond's office. As far as Jack was concerned the bozos from Miskatonic had pushed it too far. These guys might be powerful but they weren't untouchable; and waltzing in and out of a top secret base like they owned it was just asking to be touched. He knew that Hammond had been told to lay off, but the General hadn't specifically communicated that to his subordinates; so Jack figured it was up to him to express the displeasure of the SGC, not that he'd advertise the fact. He knew he had some leave coming, and he figured he might just take Teal'c fishing up around Boston; he left it unsaid that fishing wasn't the only thing he'd be doing there.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

May 10th, Langley VA.

Dave Simmons was going nuts. He'd been tasked by the DDCI to crack the mainframe for Miskatonic University. He hadn't been told why, but rumor had it that the folks there were a bit off, and CIA was looking at their foreign connections. Well for what ever reason he had the job, and now he was failing spectacularly and he didn't know why. Several times he knew he was close to getting it, then he'd suddenly find himself somewhere else; the IRS mainframe, a Mexican porn site, the Hannah Montana fan site, even his own home PC. If anyone had told him that a search had been transferred the way his had Dave would have said they were mistaken, but he'd been on the receiving end of it, and the mechanics of it alone were driving him crazy. 

"Any luck" a voice asked from behind him. 

Dave gave a rather un-manly squeak and jumped in his seat. He turned and looked at John Clark "don't do that man; you almost gave me a coronary."

"So ya got anything" Clark asked, looking very unrepentant.

"Nah" Dave said, turning back to the screen "every time I think I'm there I get sent somewhere else."

"How?"

"No idea, I would have said it's impossible, but it's happened about half a dozen times, so I'm starting to believe it."

John Clark stood back up, thanked Dave and headed back up to Jack's office.

"Anything?"

"Sorry Jack, their system wasn't crackable."

"Any idea how that's possible."

"It shouldn't be, with the system we've got we should be able to crack any system in the world, the fact that they can defeat it says a lot."

"You think I should talk to them?"

John thought for a moment "yeah I do Jack, everything we've found out about them has come up golden, there couldn't find any reason for them to pull a hoax like this and from what we've found out about the Initiative, it sounds like they're the pro's from Dover in this area. If these folks say that there's a threat out there, then I'd give em the benefit of the doubt.

"Thanks John" Jack said and sat back in his chair, what he'd just found out only confirmed what his gut had been telling him. The idea of talking to them both thrilled and frightened him because he somehow knew that his life would never be the same after.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

May 13th, Miskatonic University

Xander had been grading some late papers and was now going over a review sheet for the final when the door slammed open; since Faith did that at least once a week in an effort to startle him, Xander didn't even look up at first. When he did he didn't see Faith, instead there was an older man with salt and pepper hair and a large black man wearing a rather disconcerting cowboy hat. He sat there silently as the two walked into his office and closed the door. The way they were standing reminded him of Riley Finn, and now he knew who these two men were, the remaining parts of SG-1.

"Do you have any idea how long a stay in Leavenworth you'd have for breaking into a top secret facility?"

"Not really Colonel, in point of fact I've never been inside Cheyenne Mountain, so in that regard your question is moot. Now would you and Mr. Teal'c care to sit down?"

"No thanks, we'd rather stand; and just so you know smart ass, if I can find one bit of evidence that links you directly to the break ins, then I'm gonna be the one slamming the door on your cell. You and your people are threatening the security of this nation, and I won't stand for it." After a second Teal'c added "how were you aware of our names XanderHarris?"

"Good to know, now if you would look at this please" Xander slid a folder across his desk towards Jack. Jack picked it up and as he was reading Xander turned to Teal'c "actually there's very little about your organization that we don't know, you wouldn't be up to answering some questions would you"?

"No, I would not XanderHarris."

"I understand, secrecy and all that, still it what we do know sounds fascinating."

"It is that" Teal'c replied.

After one paragraph Jack turned white as a sheet, as he turned the pages his expression bounced between profound fear and profound rage. Reading over his shoulder, Teal'c rumbled "this could be most damaging O'Neill". Not wanting to openly agree, Jack finished reading the folder, then tossed it back on the desk and yelled "what the hell is this?"

"This is my insurance policy Colonel, if you do anything to hurt either my staff or this University; I'll make you a star faster than you can blink."

"No paper in the country would be allowed to print that."

"Maybe, but what about papers outside this country, heck; what about governments outside this country. You've got a gateway to the stars under that mountain and you're keeping all the other kids from having a turn, I doubt they'll be real understanding about that. As you can probably tell, I'm not really a fan of having the military in control of something like this, so if you wan to push this then all I can say is 'Go ahead, make my day'," Xander rasped out in his best Eastwood imitation. 

Jack just stood there, almost vibrating with anger; this little twerp thought he had them checked and mated and there wasn't anything that Jack could do about it. 'We'll see about that' Jack thought as he shook his head. 

"Now if you want to sit down we can discuss the situation like rational men and make sure that personal feelings don't screw this up for either of us."

The nonchalant, almost dismissive way that Harris spoke was the final thing needed to set Jack off; with a growl he reached across the desk and jerked Xander up by his shirt collar. "I think it's time you started to realize the position that you're in" Jack hissed out as he drew his pistol. "Now I'm gonna tell you how things are gonna be, understand?"

"Colonel, loose the gun and the attitude now, while you still can."

"I asked you a question, now what's it gonna be."

"Fine, have it your way" Xander said, rolling his eye, then he looked squarely at O'Neill "say goodnight Gracie".

Jack moved his face back a little, confused "goodnight Gracie" he muttered, sounding as though he really wasn't sure what he'd heard.

"Good enough" Xander said with a wicked grin and waved his left hand in front of O'Neill's face.

Jack didn't even have time to wonder what was happening before he hit the floor. Seeing what was happening, Teal'c lunged towards Xander, but suddenly there was a puff of powder in his face, and after the briefest inhale, he was joining Jack on the floor.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Jack came too to the sound of music; actually, he realized, it was The Sound of Music, the opening song was unmistakable. Without opening his eyes he tried to assess his situation. From the way the sound echoed, he was in a smallish room and sitting in a very uncomfortable chair; he tried moving his limbs, but only his left arm was able to respond. This confused him more than anything 'why secure my whole body but leave an arm completely free' he wondered. Figuring there was nothing else to learn, Jack opened his eyes. He was in an office that looked a lot like Daniel's, there were books everywhere; in fact the TV was sitting on a pile of rather large, old looking tomes. Teal'c was in the same predicament as he was, however the Jaffa had his right arm free as opposed to his left, but like Jack everything else was securely duct taped; there was also a small table sitting between their chairs. He was about to say something when their captor walked in. Jack took a look, then did a classic double take; the guy(?) looked to be a mass of wrinkles, like a walking Shar-pei, complete with floppy ears.

"Oh hey, you're awake" it said

"Who or what are you" Jack replied, honestly not having any idea what the answer would be.

"My name's Clem, I'm a grad student here" he looked seriously at them both "you want pop corn or cheese doodles?"

"Huh"

"With the movie, you want pop corn or cheese doodles; all we got is Coke to drink unless you want water."

Clem stood there with a smile on his face and Jack had to wonder if this was real or if he was still unconscious and his brain was having a little fun with him. "Popcorn's fine" he finally answered; Clem (whatever he was) smiled and turned his attention to Teal'c "I would like to try cheese doodles" the Jaffa rumbled. Clem's smile remained unchanged as he bustled out of the office.

Jack looked over at his team-mate "any chance of you getting loose"?

"No O'Neill, despite the freedom of my arm, the rest of me is bound most securely, and I have no access to a cutting device." He looked back at Jack "do you think you might obtain your freedom?"

"Nah buddy, we seem to be in the same boat." He sighed "I guess we're gonna have to wait till the let us go."

"Do you believe they will?"

"Sure" Clem replied as he re-entered the room "but right now Dr. Harris, Ms. Faith and Ms. Dawn all have classes, so you'll have to wait till they're done."

"You could hear us" Jack asked.

"Hey, these things aren't decoration" Clem replied as he gestured towards his ears. "Now, just behave and I won't have to get mean" he placed the snacks on the table between the two men, Jack noted that his hand was the size of a catcher's mitt "I don't like to get mean" he muttered.

"Not a problem guy, we'll just sit here and watch the movie." In truth Jack didn't want to find out what this guy's idea of mean was, however there were things he was curious about. "Hey Clem" he asked.

"Yeah" was the distracted reply.

"Where are you from?"

"Boise"

"Idaho"

"Yeah, but I couldn't stand the winters so I moved to California" he turned and gave Jack a glare "shush, I love this part."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

They were just to the part where the nuns sabotage the cars when the office door opened up to reveal two brunettes, one was curvy and the other was more slender, but both had very annoyed looks on their faces and Jack realized that he might not get out of this as unscathed as he thought.

"So is this the guy" Faith asked, her gaze never leaving Jack.

"Yes" Clem quietly answered, he could tell that Faith was angry, and an angry slayer wasn't something he wanted to be around. Sensing his discomfort, Dawn acted.

"Thanks for keeping an eye on them for us" Dawn said as she helped the very nervous demon up and shepherded him towards the door "now why don't you go wait in Xander's office and we'll finish the movie later". Grateful for the out, Clem quickly left.

While all this had been going on, Faith just stood there glaring at Jack. For his part, Jack had dealt with powerful beings before, whether they were human or otherwise but none of them compared to the woman in front of him. She wasn't physically imposing; not tall or broad or heavily muscled but there was something there that set off every danger signal he had, something fundamental as though she were a tornado in human form. Trying to defuse the situation he asked "any idea how Harris knocked me out?"

"Probably, but that's for later, right now were gonna talk about why you're here."

"Ummm, got lost looking for a fishing spot" Jack tried.

"God, save the bad jokes for Xander, at least he'll appreciate em" Faith groused. "My guess is that you don't like us looking over your shoulder."

"Is that what you call it" Jack shot back "I call it violating national security."

"Po-ta-to, po-tah-to" Dawn said "now remember a few things; first you all came to us and we chose to help, second you wouldn't have the technology or the means to use it without our help, and third, we've had our fill of government types that think they're all powerful so we're just making sure that what we gave you isn't misused."

"What do you mean, misused?"

"Used to kill, if that happens then those deaths are partially our fault, and that's something we're not willing to accept; so if you don't play nice with your new toys, well then we'll be there to smack your hands."

Jack sat back and digested what the girl had said, he could understand their wanting to monitor what was happening, and he knew that if they'd gone through normal channels, well they'd still be waiting this time next year and probably the year after that. It still rankled him that they could come and go as they pleased, but he was smart enough to realize that there wasn't anything he could really do about it, at least not yet. He sighed deeply "understood, I don't like it but understood."

"Great" the curvy brunette said but her happiness didn't reach her eyes "now while Dawn there makes the travel arrangements, there's another matter we need to discuss."

Jack turned his head a little to watch the slender girl move to a corner of the office, but his view was interrupted by a hand grabbing his chin and turning his head so he was looking directly into a pair of furious brown eyes "like the fact that you shoved a gun in my fiancés face."

"Uhhhh sorry about that" Jack said, not trusting his voice to say much else.

"OK" Faith said after staring for a moment into Jack's eyes and being satisfied with what she saw there "I understand wanting to send a message, and since you're here to do that it would be a waste to miss the opportunity". She stood back and picked his 9 mm off of the desk. Jack watched as she ejected the clip and cleared the chamber, then she proceeded to bend the gun into a horse shoe. "You want to send a message, well here's your message" she said, getting back in Jack's face as she put the gun in his lap along with a letter "DON'T FUCK WITH US" she roared. Jack really wanted to say something, but his eyes kept flicking back to his now useless gun, so for once he kept his mouth shut; however Teal'c responded with a muttered "impressive". 

Faith got behind his chair and started pushing but before she really got startedJack asked her to stop.

"What ya want?"

"That guy, Clem, what is he?"

"He's a great guy" Faithand Dawn both answered.

"I got that, but is he human?"

"You mean is he_homo-sapiens_, then no; but in terms of what it means to be human, then yeah he is."

Jack just nodded, realizing it wasprobably all the answerhe'd ever get; then felt himselfrushing towards the corner where Dawn had been drawing. Jack could see that it was glowing and he felt the chair picking up speed. He closed his eyes, anticipating smashing into the wall, then opened them as he felt himself rolling across a differently textured floor; he was in the gate room. He looked around as Teal'c joined him and assessed the situation. He was taped to a cheap office chair with his gun bent like a U and needing someone to get him loose and currently there were about two dozen people looking at him, including his commanding officer. It wasn't the most embarrassing moment of his life, but it was definitely in the top ten.


	12. What I Did on My Summer Vacation Pt1

A/N Here's the next chapter or at least part of the next chapter. It goes without saying that I own no part of BTVS or have any rights to the works of HP Lovecraft, I'm just borrowing their stuff for a bit. I would like to thank all of you who have read, reviewed and/or made this story a favorite, your praise is always appreciated; as is your criticism. But if you do criticize, please keep it coherent as pointless rants kill off my brain cells and I can't afford to lose any more.

Thanks POE1911

WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION

Part I

Unknown Place

"Sir, are you seriously considering accepting the contract?"

"Of course."

"Why, how can it possibly benefit us?"

"The fee aside, the prestige it will bring us is incalculable and we must also consider our reputation, we have never refused to accept a contract.

"But accepting this one will mean war with the slayers."

"Very likely."

"And how is this a good thing?"

"They will weed out our less accomplished members, making us a stronger organization; then, after watching too many of their young girls die, then council will back off. They will not admit defeat, of course, and the conflict will flare from time to time, but in the end, we shall remain and from the slayers, that is a defeat indeed."

"And if they decide that eliminating us all is worth the price?"

"Then we shall target their command structure until they get the message."

"And if they decide to ignore our field workers and come after us directly?"

"They have no idea where we are and this place is heavily warded."

"True, but what if they demand the name of the contractor in exchange for leaving us be?"

"We will not provide it."

"Ever?"

"Ever, there are some rules we cannot violate" he looked at the underling "why all the questions, this is a contract, nothing more. We will deal with this as we have in the past."

"I am not so sure."

"Why not?"

"Because whether you pass it off as luck, skill or a combination of both, every enemy they've encountered is dead and they remain. I do not wish for the order to perish because our foe was more powerful or resolute than you expected; therefore, I would be prepared to surrender the contractor."

He looked long and searchingly at the underling "should I be concerned about your loyalty?"

"Never, but remember my loyalty is to the order, not to you. I believe that this is a mistake and I will not be silent while you do something that imperils this order; I cannot sit and watch."

"I understand and your concerns are noted, but the contract goes forward."

The underling forced down a surge of foreboding "as you direct" she said with a bow. As she turned to go make the contract known, she couldn't help but think that this wasn't the kind of mistake you walked away from.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Miskatonic University

Faith walked in while Xander was on the phone, this wasn't an unusual thing. Casually Faith wondered if it was a slayer thing, she remembered Jeeves always complaining that B never knocked; she slumped down into her favorite chair and waited for him to finish.

"No Mr. Clark, I don't feel that a face to face meeting is necessary right now."

………………..

"I understand that you'll have questions from time to time, but that's what the web site if for."

…………………………….

"Yes, I realize that you're taking all of this on faith, although you should be able to fact check nearly everything that's posted; but there are some things that need to take place before I'm prepared for an up close and personal."

……………………

"I'm not sure, before the end August, but I can't narrow it down any better than that."

…………………….

"Well of course you're not the only people we're talking too."

…………………

"You know I can't tell you that."

…………………

"I know, and if you're trying to stretch this call out in order to trace it, well all I can say is don't waste your time."

………………….

"Yes, I understand that you have to try, so if there isn't anything else I'll talk to you later Mr. Clark; oh, and tell Dr. Ryan to watch out for Liz Elliot, she's poking around in stuff he'd probably want to stay private."

………………….

"Of course I can't tell you my source but if you're smart you'll take this seriously."

…………………..

"Goodbye Mr. Clark."

As Xander hung up the phone Faith spoke up "you think he'll be a problem?"

"Nah, a bit of a challenge, that's all."

"How's it going with the others?"

"Pretty well, a couple just refuse to believe it but we've gotten a lot of hits on the site and about two dozen E-Mails a day."

"So how many we got left to contact."

"Dawn figures about twenty more, mostly here and Australia but a few scattered around Europe."

"So is that what we're gonna be doing over the summer?"

"Mostly, unless something serious comes up."

"So what do you want to do tonight?"

"Well I know this really hot girl that likes the Red Sox, and there's a home game tonight."

Faith just gave him a smirk "think I could tag along."

Xander just grinned "I don't think that'll be a problem."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

LONDON

Andrew Wells felt adrift. He still held to his ultimate goal of redemption, but he was no longer certain that he was going about it the right way. It had all seemed so clear in Sunnydale; he would fight along side the slayer and die while doing the right thing. But it hadn't worked out that way; he had survived; Anya giving her life for his. After that he had stayed with the slayers more out of inertia than anything else. He had tried to help where he could, but the core Scoobies would never trust him, and he had drifted from job to job in the slayer organization without really feeling like he was getting any closer to the redemption he sought. He did his best at every task they gave him, Dawn and Mr. Giles were kind of nice to him and he felt like he had helped some of the younger slayers, but it just didn't seem like he was doing enough, or doing what he was supposed to do. Take today for example, he and Mr. Giles were meeting for lunch to put together a new team of two slayers and a watcher. Mr. Giles liked to do this in an informal setting where everyone was a bit more comfortable, and Andrew's job was to be an extra set of eyes for Mr. Giles; to notice things that he didn't like how the girls reacted to each other and the watcher. Honestly Andrew didn't know what he could see that someone with decades of experience couldn't but he went along mostly because he had nothing else to do. It's kind of ironic, but as often as Andrew thought about redemption, when an opportunity presented itself it was honestly the last thing on his mind.

He was sitting with Mr. Giles at an outdoor café with Vi and an younger slayer named Ivana, Andrew knew her a bit and they were making small talk as they waited for the watcher that the two of them would be paired with when Andrew noticed the red light. Being the geek that he was, he immediately recognized it as a laser, the kind you used for a pointer, or on a gun. He was dumbfounded as he watched it track over Mr. Giles body; apparently no one else had noticed it. The thing seemed to settle over the center of his chest, only then did Andrew's brain kick into gear and he acted or at least he tried to. His plan had been to jump up and push Mr. Giles out of his chair and under the cover of the table, but somehow Andrew's legs got tangled up with his chair and he sort of fell on top of Mr. Giles, looking and feeling rather foolish. That was until it felt like someone hit him in the back with a hammer. Suddenly all he knew was pain and that Mr. Giles was OK, for whatever reason that was the only thing he seemed to be able to focus on, the fact that Mr. Giles was OK. Andrew knew that he was not OK however. There seemed to be a problem with his body somewhere because the signals just weren't conducting right and he couldn't quite seem to get his body to do what he wanted it to do. He was half laying on Mr. Giles and trying to get himself untangled from his chair. The two girls just sat there and looked at him strangely; for some reason this angered him and he yelled "you find the shooter" as he pointed to Vi "and you, get him to safety" as he pointed at Ivana, for his part Mr. Giles just sat there with an odd look on his face.

Vi had left, but Ivana seemed frozen in place when Andrew saw the damned red dot again. It seemed to be zeroing in on Mr. Giles head, and try as he might, Andrew just couldn't get himself free enough from the chair to cover that part of Mr. Giles body. Desperately he waved his hand into the path of the red dot, then he felt his arm jerk. It was odd that he didn't feel any pain, especially with his arm now gone at the wrist but all his focus was on Mr. Giles. The older man now had a bloody furrow along the left side of his head, but it didn't look serious to Andrew. Ivana was still sitting there, motionless; seemingly frozen in place when Andrew saw the dot yet again. With a kick born of desperation, he finally freed himself from the legs of his chair and surged forward, covering all of Mr. Giles body with his own. It was then that he felt like someone had slapped him in the back of the head (something that Tucker had seemed fond of doing). It didn't really hurt, but it had obviously done something because he lost what little bit of control over his body that he had. Despite his best efforts he slid off Mr. Giles body to one side and crashed into the pavement.

Only then did Ivana move, she leaned forward and jerked Mr. Giles out of his chair and bore him to the ground and rolled him underneath a table. Andrew was able to note that the older man seemed to be wounded in the abdomen in addition to the graze on his head. Andrew considered thinking about what had happened to him, but he didn't seem to be able to do that or maybe he just didn't care; Mr. Giles was OK and that was enough for him. He closed his eyes and tried to re-group his strength, but he didn't open them again.

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Malcolm Anderson had been with the Order of Teraka for fifteen years, and he was one of their best. When the contract had been posted he had jumped on it immediately. His family had a history with the Watcher's Council, and the opportunity to take out the current head of that organization was just the kind of pay back he'd been hoping for, and he got paid for it as well. But then the kid had interfered, three shots, and only a graze to show for it. He looked through the M82's scope and tried to figure out what was happening. The kid was dead, finally, and the blond had gotten the target under some cover. He searched carefully ….. there, it wouldn't be the best shot he'd ever taken, but in this case it looked to be the best chance he'd have to finish the job right here. He was settling the butt of the rifle into his shoulder when something moving caught the corner of his eye. He turned his head and just had time to wonder how this was happening when the parking meter caved in the side of his head and he fell out of the third floor window he was perched in. As he hit the ground, Vi darted forward to make sure he was dead. She was kind of freaked about killing a human, but she figured better him than Mr. Giles. Once she was sure the target was dead the red head pulled out a cell phone and called Watcher's central and explained what had happened, then she called an ambulance as she wiped her fingerprints off the shaft of the meter. As she was cleaning up Vi noticed the ring the wanna-be assassin had on, she didn't know at the time that it was significant.

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Vi had never expected to be in this situation and now that she was, she never wanted to be again. With Giles in the hospital and Andrew dead, for some reason everyone was looking to her to take charge after all she was the senior slayer on site and all the experienced watchers were in the field and she was a Sunnydale survivor which meant that she had more experience in a crisis than anyone. Everyone was looking to her and all she wanted to do was run and hide, it gave her an enormous amount of sympathy for what Buffy had gone through during their fight with the First. She took a deep breath and looked at the assembled watchers and slayers "alright, until we know how serious a threat this is, call all stations and have them lock down for the time being. The trigger man was wearing a fairly distinctive ring" she pointed to a couple of watchers in training "you two go research the possibilities and come back here when you've got some ideas. As for the rest of you, I want you to look into who would gain from Mr. Giles death, let's see about narrowing down the suspects and try to figure out what their purpose is."

"What about you" asked Mr. Deshpande, the man who was her new watcher.

"I'm gonna call in the Cavalry" Vi replied.

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Miskatonic University

Xander put the phone down, his face was ashen.

"What's up babe?"

"We've gotta cancel tonight and get to London."

"Why, what's up?"

"Giles got shot, and Andrew got killed keeping him alive."

"We know who or why?"

"Nope, that's the first order of business after we get there."

"Who is 'we'?"

"Me, you, Buffy, Al and Wills, not to mention whoever's already there."

"So you're pulling in all the big guns."

"Most of em, I'm gonna have Dawn and Oz stay here in case we need them to go through our warehouses and research."

"Cool, so when are we going and how heavy are we packing?"

"One hour, we're gonna jump to Cleveland and pick up Buff and Al, and then the four of us are headed to England, and as for packing" he paused a moment "as heavy as you want."

"Five by Five; you want me to pack anything for you?"

"Just clothes and stuff for me, I'll take care of the rest of it from what we've got here."

"Sure thing X, see ya in a bit."

Xander sagged back in his chair and relaxed for a moment; he figured it would be a while before he would have a chance to relax again. Then he sat upright and hit the intercom for Dawn's office; he wanted to explain what was going on and have her and Oz start researching possibilities, there weren't that many groups that had the stones to try and take out the head Watcher, and the more they knew about the ones that existed, the quicker they'd be able to respond.

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LONDON

It still seemed surreal to Vi, according to the Watcher Council rules, she was in charge as the senior slayer on site in a time of crisis; she really didn't want to be in charge. She was sitting behind Giles desk, having just discussed Giles condition and funeral arrangements for Andrew when her hackles went up, something had set off her slayer senses. She looked around and noticed that one corner of the room was glowing; just as Buffy had said it might, so she relaxed, but just a little. Suddenly she was aware of a sound, it was like speech, but there was a weird doppler effect like someone trying to talk to you as they passed in a car.

". . . . . . . did you have to bring that thing, it makes my slaydar all tweaky?"

"Don't worry B" Faith replied "you'll get used to it soon enough" then the dark slayer turned to Vi and asked "Giles still OK?"

Feeling a little intimidated with Buffy, Xander, Faith and the chief watcher from the Hellmouth all looking to her, Vi just nodded and collapsed back into Giles' chair.

The others followed her example and sat, Xander leaned forward in his seat "so what exactly is the situation here?"

Vi proceeded to recount the shooting, her reaction and Andrew's heroism.

"So who's guarding Giles?"

"I've got one team in the hospital, one patrolling outside and I've had one of our mages cast protective wards on Giles, his room and the hospital."

"Excellent job Violet, you've covered every contingency and done so efficiently" Al chimed in.

"And you're sure Giles is OK" Buffy asked again.

"Yeah, they operated on him because one of the bullets nicked his liver and they wanted to make sure everything was cool, but he's out of surgery and should wake up in a couple of hours."

There were relieved noises then Xander spoke up "since we're doing nothing except waiting on Willow" he shifted his gaze to Vi "do you think you could go over the incident again, very slowly and see if we can figure anything out."

"Sure" and Vi told her tale yet again, only this time everyone was questioning what had happened, what she had heard and what she had seen. " . . . . then I checked the body over and made sure there wasn't anything that could trace it to me."

"Did you notice anything unusual about the killer" Al asked.

Vi thought for a moment "nah, he looked human, there weren't any of the usual giveaways like different colored blood or an odd number of fingers or joints that bent the wrong way".

"Was there anything on the body, tatoos or something like that that caught your attention" Xander chimed in.

"He had a weird ring, but that looked like it."

"Ring" Buffy said straightening up "what kind of ring?"

Vi's brow wrinkled "well, it was copper, there was no stone and the flat part had some kind of groddy spider on it."

Glances were exchanged and Xander sat back and said one word "Teraka".

"What's 'Teraka' Vi asked."

"It's an order of assassins" Al replied "they are very good and very single minded, if one fails they will next send two and keep doing so until their target is dead. They care only for the hunt and kill, nothing else matters to them."

"So how do we keep Giles alive" Vi asked."

"I can only think of two ways" Xander said "destroy the order completely or convince them to give up whoever contracted their services and we convince him or her to call it off."

"Both of those are impossible" Al said with some finality.

"Not impossible, just very difficult" Faith shot back.

"We'll never kill them all" Al retorted "and they'd never give up the contractor, their reputation wouldn't allow it."

"Splainy" Buffy asked.

Al looked at her and gave a very British sigh at her butchery of the language "if they tell us who the contractor is and that fact ever got out, then no one would ever use them again, so to try to convince them to tell you who contracted to have Giles killed is pointless because it is something they cannot do."

"I've gotta disagree there Al" Xander said "these folks are business people, if we make the cost of doing business too high; they'll give the name up."

"And how do we make the cost too high?"

"Kill off a bunch of their assassins" Xander answered simply.

The room was completely silent as everyone looked at Xander, the looks ranged from Buffy's utter incredulity to Faith's look of almost eager anticipation; Vi was somewhere in the middle. "Are you serious" Buffy finally managed.

"Of course" Xander answered "but we've gotta make contact with em first, and maybe we can get it out of em without bloodshed, but my guess is we'll have to sting em first."

"So are we going to send slayers after known assassins" Al asked.

"NO" Xander replied "I won't have slayers killing people, even hired killers like these, no I will take care of the killing if it's needed" as he was saying this he pulled out the _Necronomicon_ and everyone understood what he meant.

"Well" Al said after an awkward silence "our first order of business is to find these tossers so we can get what we need."

Vi, Buffy and Xander all started dialing, and soon the word was out, the Slayers were interested in the Order of Teraka.

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Unknown Place

The ringing of a phone sounded out of place, but it held everyone's attention. The two that had argued earlier had been joined by three others; together they were the command structure of the Order. They knew that their first assassin had failed, and they had heard that the Watcher's knew that they were responsible for the attack that had wounded Mr. Giles. They had been discussing their possible courses of action when the phone rang. Considering the resources the Watcher's could bring to bear, the call wasn't entirely unexpected, but it was still disconcerting. After three rings, the head of the Order picked it up.

"Yes"

"May I assume I'm speaking to the decision making section of the Order of Teraka?"

"You may, and who is this?"

"This is someone who would like to discuss the contract that currently exists on Rupert Giles."

"I'm sorry, only the person who contracted our services can alter the agreement."

"Indeed, and for that to happen, you would need to tell me who that was."

"I cannot do that."

"You can, but you choose not to do so" there was a sigh "I must warn you that if you do not give us what we require then action will have to be taken. Personally I have no animus for your organization and the thought of all the death and destruction that will occur if our organizations collide sickens me, however, that name is something we require. Once provided, we will take no further action against you in this matter, but we do need that name."

"I understand your position" the head replied "but I cannot provide what you ask. I'm afraid you'll just have to come and take it." The last was said with just a hint of gloating, he knew that there was no way the Council could seriously hurt the Order.

"Very well" the voice answered "your organization consists of 247 members does it not" there was a pause as if an answer was expected; but no answer was coming, the five of the Order were too stunned to respond. There was no way that such information could have been amassed in such a short time, their contemplations were interrupted as the voice continued "I have been instructed to tell you that in ten minutes one tenth, or twenty five members will die. Please reconsider your position."

"You're bluffing" the head replied automatically "you don't have the resources, the intelligence necessary to do what you claim."

"If that is your reply then….."

"It is"

"Good day and I expect we will be speaking again."

The five of the Order just stood there as the caller hung up, some were confident, others less so, and at least one was frightened.

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Al hung up the phone, he closed his eyes and clenched his fist in frustration; they hadn't gone for it. Now it was time to make good their threat. "OK Xander, they said no so get it set up."

Xander just nodded and left the room, the others watched him go, looking resigned but worried; finally Willow (who had arrived during the phone call) broke the silence. "I'll go keep an eye on him."

Faith stopped her, gently, "you sure about that Red, it ain't gonna be pretty".

Willow regarded the younger woman for a second "I know it's not going to be pretty, I'm almost sick to my stomach thinking about what Xander's going to do, but I know how seductive that kind of power can be so if something goes wrong I want to be there." Willow's voice dropped but its intensity went through the roof "I owe him that".

Faith looked at the red head; in some ways Willow would be closer to Xander that Faith could ever hope to be, the two were part of each other. It could almost be said that some of what she loved in Xander was there because of Willow. They had never gotten along, Faith knew that things had been done and said on both sides of the equation but it occurred to her that maybe they could put some of that behind them. "Come on, we'll both keep an eye on him, cause if things go south, you can't handle the book, I can."

For her part, Willow was surprised at Faith's suggestion at first, but then she understood that they both loved the same man, just in different ways. She also realized just how similar they were, both had walked on the dark side and paid for it, both had been helped back by the same guy and both were very protective of that guy. Willow decided that holding on to past grudges was a bit childish, and that if Xander cared that much about Faith, then she was someone Willow would enjoy spending time with. So she put the past were it belonged and extended her hand "sure, lead the way."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Xander looked up when the door opened; he hadn't been expecting any anyone so he was really surprised to see both Faith and Willow walking through the door. "Red and me figured you could use a hand there X."

"Why"

"Just in case you go all Sith on us ya big dummy" Willow supplied. She smiled at her friend but the smile was tinged with worry.

"Figured Red could shield everything, just in case this shit goes south, and I can handle the book if you get stupid on us." Like Willow, Faith was worried about what Xander was going to do, and it was evident in her posture and voice.

For his part, Xander actually blushed, he didn't know why but having two people who were so close to him put their differences aside because he needed them touched him deeply. "Thanks guys, I was a little worried myself there." Then he looked at Willow, just let me know how much time you'll need to set everything up and I'll get started after you're ready."

"It shouldn't take more than thirty seconds" Willow responded. Xander just nodded and started drawing a rather complex diagram out of the _Necronomicon, _Faith noted that it was centered around the ring that they'd retrieved from the assassins body as it lay in the morgue.

Xander finished his drawing and looked at Willow and nodded. She began chanting softly and soon Xander and Faith were encircled in a faintly glowing cylinder of blue/green energy. When she finished, Xander started his chant. While Willow's had been soft and lilting, Xander's was in a much harsher language and not nearly so pleasant to listen to; but then Faith remembered that there was nothing pleasant about what they were doing.

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Knowing that where they were was safe, the five used the time to try and determine if there had been an increase in slayer activity; and if not, how the Council might carry out their threat, all the while each was surreptitiously checking their watches. About nine minutes after the call, one of the five; the one with the most business sense, grabbed his head, as though it were about to explode. He stood there shaking and holding his head while the others watched in impotent horror as his eyes filled with blood. After thirty seconds he went rigid and collapsed; it was clear that he was dead before he hit the ground. Less than a minute later reports started coming in from those partners and co-workers that had watched members of the Order collapse in death. That was when the phone rang again.

"You weren't bluffing" the head answered as soon as he picked up the phone.

"No, and it will continue to happen until we get the name."

"That we cannot do."

"That's foolish, your Order will continue to be decimated every half hour until you are no more, you will have no chance at serious retaliation or vengeance, your Order will simply cease to be because of your stubbornness. Give us the name and the death stops."

"You ask for what we cannot give" the Head said finally.

"Then enjoy what you have wrought" came the reply.

As soon as the call cut off the Second stood in front of her superior "give him the name, to resist is pointless."

"We have never surrendered a contractor before, not for any threat; I do not mean to start now."

"But before they were threats that we could parry or avoid; now they do not even need to know where or who we are to strike. And if their magic is strong enough to get through the wards here, then nowhere on this earth is safe."

There was almost a minute of silence, then the Head sighed and said "then we shall perish and the Order will perish with us, but we will hold to our ways." He felt a sudden pricking sensation in his chest, but as he looked down he couldn't see the source, he felt around and his hand came back red, blood red. He looked over at his Second and noticed the bloodstained stiletto in her hand "how" he managed to ask.

She laughed but it wasn't a pleasant sound "I knew all of the restrictions" she held up the knife and flicked the blade; a ringing tone answered "obsidian" she said "the Aztecs certainly got that right".

The Head colapsed and not wasting any time the Second darted forward and removed the Head's golden ring "I now claim leadership in the Order" then removing her ring and passing it to one of the two left she said "you are now my Second, serve me well and contact them, when you do give them these GPS co-ordinates so that I can stay this madness and save our skins."

"You would give up the contractor" her new Second asked.

"Unless you know of another way for the Order to survive, yes."

The new second just nodded and went to make the call.

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Faith and Willow came back into Giles office half supporting half dragging Xander. They were just in time to hear the last bit of the conversation. Al hung up the phone and turned to Xander "think you can do it again in half an hour"?

Xander simply nodded but both women looked nervous. Seeing this, Buffy asked "can anyone else do this Xand, just in case you get too tired?"

Xander thought for a moment "I suppose Buff, but it can't be slayers and they have to have lost some body part or else the book'll kill em."

Vi and Al started going through the list of personnel, seeing who might fit the critieria when the phone rang. Everyone stared at it a moment before Al picked it up. "Watcher's Council"

……………………………….

"I'm glad to hear that."

……………………….

"Yes I'll pass that on, expect three."

……………………………….

He started writing "yes, I have all that; they will be there in one hour."

……………………………………..

"Yes, thank you and good day". Al hung up the phone and looked at Xander; "they folded, I figured you Faith and Willow would want to go get the information" he handed over a set of GPS coordinates "here's where the meet is and it's in one hour."

Xander just looked at the slip of paper and muttered "Thank God".


	13. What I Did on My Summer Vacation Pt 2

A/N Sorry about the lateness, that darn real life has no consideration when it comes to deadlines. Anyway, here's part 2 and part 3 is coming. Actually that should be the last chapter, I may or may not add an epilogue; I honestly haven't decided yet. As always, thanks for the reviews and the alerts, they're a real boost. Remember, criticism is appreciated, however please keep it coherent, pointless rants just make my two brain cells hurt. I own nothing recognizable and I'm not doing this for money so please don't sue me. Thanks again and now...on with the show.

POE1911

WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION Pt 2

Louisville, Kentucky – Standiford Field

"Are ya sure this is the place Red?"

"This is where the GPS co-ordinates put us."

"Yeah, but look around, we're standing in front of a bunch of hangars near a runway that's in use, why here."

"Uhh guys, look over there" Xander gestured "now if you were an assassin and needed to blend in, what's better than that?"

"You're shittin me" Faith yelled "are you tellin me that UPS drivers are hired killers?"

"Probably not, or at least most of em aren't, but think about it, their trucks are everywhere, so much so that you don't even think about it when you see one, these guys come right up to your door and ask for one specific person, it's simple."

"And brilliant" Willow added.

"That too" Xander said, then looked around "but we are a bit conspicuous just standing here, maybe we should get out of the open."

The other two nodded and they moved into the shadows of the nearest hangar. As they walked, Xander leaned over to Willow "you got your mojo turned on?"

"Yeah" the red head answered "and there's three people watching us; one close and two far away."

"Snipers ya think?"

"Considering who we're dealing with, probably."

"OK, so where's the one that's close" Xander asked as his eyes scanned the area.

"Up ahead, she's coming to us."

"Cool" said Faith "I hate playing hide and seek anyway."

"Just remember to stay cool, we're neutral now, and I gave my word."

"No sweat X, I'll be sweetness and light".

Both Xander and Willow rolled their eyes when Faith chimed in with that but there wasn't any more time for conversation because the person that Willow had been sensing showed up. It was a young woman dressed in a brown delivery uniform. She stopped and scanned the three very professionally "well well, two of the original Scoobies and the Dark Slayer, I must say I'm impressed."

"Thanks" Xander said "and I take it that you are the current head of the Order of Teraka?"

The woman just nodded.

"Do you have the information for us?"

She pulled out a large envelope "here's what we have, I don't know if the name he gave was an alias or not, we usually don't get too picky unless they try to stiff us, but there's photo's and a recording of his voice; that should be sufficient."

"It is" Xander stuck out his hand "thank you."

She hesitated then returned the gesture "you're welcome" she hesitated then asked "could you do me one favor?"

"What is it" Xander replied, intrigued by the woman's hesitation.

"Don't tell what's happened here".

Xander looked at his two companions and they both gave abbreviated nods "done".

"Thank you" she said, and then her rather imperious demeanor returned "hope that you are never targeted by us" and with a bit of flash and smoke, she was gone.

"A bit melodramatic, but overall I give the whole performance an eight point five" Xander quipped.

"Whatever" Faith said giving her fiancé a dig in the ribs "lets get back to London, figure out who this bozo is and eliminate our problem".

"What she said" chimed in Willow.

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They were all standing in Giles office as Xander opened the packet he'd been given by the order of Teraka; even Dawn and Oz were there, well at least they were on the speakerphone. The first thing out was a photograph; Xander held it up "is this someone we know"?

"Yeah I do" Al spoke up "his family were big wheels with the old council; he even had a sister who was a watcher."

"And the name" Buffy prompted.

"Michael Chandler Post" Alistair said "he hung around with a bunch of us trainees even though he went into the army."

"And his sister was Gwen Post" Faith asked.

"Oh, you've heard of her" Al said as all the Scoobies exchanged glances.

"You might say that" Xander quipped.

"Or you might say that she tried to kill us and we ended up cutting off her arm and frying her with electricity" Willow added.

"You're kidding"

"Fraid not Al" Faith told the man "she showed up claiming to be my new watcher but all she was really after was the Glove of Mynhigon. She got a hold of it and tried to kill us all by using it to call down lightning, but we cut her arm off and the discharge crispy crittered her instead."

Al and most of the room looked rather ill at that thought; Xander even heard a muted "yuck" over the speakerphone. "So why does this guy want Giles dead" Xander asked "what could he gain from it"?

"I don't know but we better find out quick" Vi said, speaking for the first time "cause if this guy's military and he knows a lot about watchers and slayers then he could bring a lot of force down on us in a hurry. So we need to be quick and stay under the official radar on this or he might try something even more drastic."

"So what do you want us to do" Willow asked.

Vi blushed and turned to Xander "I don't have a clue, what do you suggest?"

Xander thought for a moment then turned to face the rest of the room "Al you and Buffy check out this guy's connections to the Council, see if there's anyone still here that's a friend or feeding him information. Vi, you and your watcher go through this file and see if anything sticks out, where they met, body language anything. Dawn" he spoke up "you and Oz talk to our allies over there and see if you can ferret anything out about this putz. Will, you and Kennedy go shake down the demon bars and see if anything comes up."

So what are you gonna do" Kennedy asked.

"Faith and I are gonna find this guy, shadow him and see who he's talking to and where." He looked around "any other questions?" At the shaking of heads Vi spoke up "then lets get started and we'll meet back here in eight hours."

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As the two women walked into the bar, much of the noise died off. That's a common reaction when two beautiful women walk into most bars but this time it was for a different reason, these two women had tripped just about every mystical alarm the bar had. The bartender scowled at the two women, the brunette was obviously a slayer, it was in the way she moved; the red-head was probably her watcher. The noise picked up as they both eased up to the bar and stood there; finally the bartender came over to talk.

"What you want?"

"Just some information and spreading the word" the brunette answered.

"Yeah, what you birds want to know and what kind of word you want spread?"

Kennedy pulled out a copy of the picture they'd gotten from the Order of Teraka "this guy's name is Michael Post, his family is old time watchers and he's in the army; we want to know everything about him, where he's been, who he's talking to, any connections he might have, the works."

The bartender took the picture "so what'd this wanker do that's got the Watcher's on his arse."

"He arranged for the current head watcher to have a rather fatal accident."

"Really, sounds like we ought to be helpin this bloke not you lot."

"Not if you've got half a brain" Willow spoke up "remember that this guy's family is old school watcher. Remember what the council was like when there was only one slayer; now imagine what they'd be like now that there are hundreds."

What little noise there had been now stilled as all of the patrons thought about what had just been said. Unfortunately it was one of the less intelligent patrons that spoke next "so instead of killin us like usual you're suddenly making nice cause you need our help to get rid of this problem" it looked around at the bar "not to mention all we've got is the watcher's word on this load of bollocks."

Willow turned towards the speaker, a smile lighting up her face "watcher, who said I was a watcher". She moved through the crowd until she was directly in front of the speaker; she looked up into its surprised eyes as black swirled into her own gaze "I'm not a watcher and I'm not a slayer" she said, then raised herself on tip toe and whispered in its ear "I'm a lot nastier then a slayer."

"Oh crap" someone in the back muttered "it's the Red Witch."

Most of the patrons took a large step away from Willow while the eyes on the demon Willow was confronting expanded til they were almost the size of dinner plates. "Uhhhh right then, so if we find anything out about this tosser we'll be sure to call" it said with a sickly smile.

"Great" Willow chirped as her eyes returned to their normal green. Kennedy left their card with the bartender and the two girls left, to the very great relief of the bar's patrons. They were a block away before Kennedy finally spoke "it's not fair you know".

"What isn't?"

"Well, I'm a slayer and they barely batted an eye when they're supposed to be scared of me. But all you have to do is let a little black swirl in your eyes and every one of those things is pissing its pants. How can I be the bad cop when you're the ultimate bad cop?"

Willow looked over at her girlfriend and laughed "sorry sweety, I promise I'll be the meek little watcher and let you pummel the loudmouth at the next place."

Kennedy pouted for a moment "you promise there'll be a loudmouth at the next place."

"There always is."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Samir Deshpande worked to hold back a smile. He might be fairly new to the world of slayers and watchers but he had three younger sisters so he could tell when the frustration level was getting to a young woman. He mentally began counting down in his head 5…..4…..3…..2…..

"There's nothing in this darn file that we don't already know" Vi yelled and threw the Terakan file onto Giles desk with a huff.

"Major information, of course not" Samir gently told her "this man is not going to just tell anyone what his plans are; no the trick is to look at what he said and how he said it to gather clues as to what his plans may be."

Samir had known about watchers and slayers his whole life, from his uncle on his mother's side. He was a watcher and had actually been in charge of a slayer for a time. Samir had seen the sadness in his uncle's eyes when he talked about the young girl and Samir had been curious to learn more. He had learned more than he wanted to when he was twelve. There had been a series of attacks at a nearby village and suddenly Samir's uncle had returned from England. That night Samir followed the man and had seen his first demon, and witnessed his first battle with the forces that would destroy humanity. There had been no slayer there, just a bunch of men and women who knew what to do; it was then that Samir knew that this was the path his life must take. So now here he was, fifteen years later and in charge of a slayer that wasn't significantly younger than he was; it made things a little awkward at times.

"So how do we do that?"

"Well, as my mother used to say 'the Devil is in the details', we need to go carefully over every scrap of information that we have."

Vi looked at her watcher "do you really think there's something here?"

"I'm sure of it" Samir replied "but we'll need to dig a bit to find it."

Vi sighed "OK then, where do we start" she asked as she swept her arm over the file.

"Lets look at the transcript of their conversation again" he said; and the two of them went back to work.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Alistair looked at the list they'd compiled, he knew that there was a pattern here, but right now he just couldn't see it.

"So what's the connection" Buffy asked.

"I'm not sure" Al replied "these old watcher families have been intermingling for centuries so an offspring of one spending time with other families isn't uncommon. Relationships in the Council start when you're quite young and develop over years."

"Maybe that's the problem" Buffy said, after a moments thought.

"What is?"

"Well we've been looking at the Watcher side of things but this guy isn't a Watcher. Maybe we should be focusing on kids in the real world with Watcher ties."

It only took a second for Al to realize that Buffy had indeed hit on what they should be looking at. Impulsively he leaned over and kissed her, it only lasted a few seconds and he pulled back before she could properly respond, but both of them recognized the magnitude of the step that had just been taken, unfortunately now wasn't the time to talk about it. Instead Alistair just looked her in the eyes and said "never let anyone ever convince you that you're just a weapon, there is so much more to you than just being a slayer."

Buffy was breathless and still a little kiss-dazzled so all she could do was nod. Al just hugged her shoulders "OK then, lets go over these files again and look for family members that are roughly his age but do their work in the real world". And without another word the two went over the files yet again.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"You know who sucks at undercover?"

"We both do, unless we're trying to blend in with bikers or pirates, then we're cool."

"True, but I don't think there's anything we can do that would make us more conspicuous if we tried."

"Probably not" Faith looked around "you think he made us?"

"Not yet, but I think that it's more a matter of luck than skill on our parts."

"So what do we do?"

"Well" Xander said pointing at a shop that seemed to cater to middle aged women "I'm gonna go in there and get you some very un-Faith clothes, then you're gonna change into em, sneak into the back of the pub and photograph whoever he's eating with. Then we get the hell out of here."

"Why do I have to be the one that changes?"

"Because I don't have a fake eye, we can drab you up to where you don't look like you, but my only options are this patch or the socket so I'm kinda out of the running."

"What about shades?"

"Too dreary, just like the patch, shades would be conspicuous."

"All right" Faith humphed "get the damn things while I keep an eye on the place; but I swear Harris, if anyone hears about this I'm gonna bust your ass."

"I promise Faith, no-one'll hear a word from me" Xander headed towards the store with a smirk; he was telling the truth when he said he wouldn't tell a soul, but a picture would indeed be worth a thousand words.

LATER

Faith couldn't believe she was doing this. She was wearing a dress that had all the grace of a burlap bag, her hair was up and stuffed under a hat so ugly that the store owner had given it to Xander for free and she'd altered her shape by padding the dress so it looked like she had a gut and an enormous ass. She figured it was worth it to nab the guy that had tried to bump off Jeeves, but just barely. She looked around as though she was looking for the bathroom and spotted the guy; he was eating at a table with three other guys. They were all laughing and smiling together, honestly they looked pretty tight. She rummaged around in the hideous vinyl purse she was carrying and palmed the sleek little digital camera. Without looking directly at them she walked past the table holding the button down, hopefully she'd get a good picture of all four guys, and even if she didn't she was pretty sure she could describe all of em. Once she got to the bathroom she locked herself in a stall and went about putting on her regular clothes and ditching the monstrosity she was wearing; all the while trying to figure out just what she'd do to Xander for payback. Looking much more like herself, Faith exited the stall and slithered out the bathroom window. Sure enough, Xander was right there waiting for her "come on beautiful and let's see what the others have found.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Rupert Giles was convinced that he must be currently atoning for the errors of his misspent youth. He had spent time in the hospital before, being a field watcher he could hardly avoid it; but at those times he had only been subjected to the tyranny of the nurses, now he not only had the nurses but a contingent of overprotective slayers and watchers to contend with. He was sure that he was literally smothering under the constant supervision. 'Well' he thought 'at least this cannot get any worse'.

"Yo G-Man, how's it hangin?"

"Obviously I was mistaken" Giles muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing Xander, I was simply remarking on how some things are inevitable."

Xander stood there looking confused for a moment, but then he remembered that Giles had suffered a head wound so he might be a little off the rails "so how are you doing Giles"?

"Excellent, or at least I would if I could bloody well get out of this torture chamber; I don't suppose you could get some of the slayers to give me a little breathing room?"

"Sorry, that ones not my call Giles" he said as he sat down, then he switched gears "so how much do you remember?"

"Not much, just images really, that kind of rot; but I've gotten at least five different versions of what happened from my jailers" he paused "Andrew's funeral?"

"Late tomorrow, and yes I'll make sure you're there."

"Good, I owe it to his memory to be there."

Xander had no response to this so he continued with his previous line "now as to what happened, this is the best we've got ……….. then Vi cleaned up the area and noticed that the guy had a distinctive ring."

"Terakan?"

"Yeah, and we've already talked to them."

Giles looked confused "to what purpose?"

"We wanted the contractor so it was either talk to them or go after the sad sacks that just pull the triggers until we learned something."

"And they gave up the name?"

"Yeah"

"Up until now I would have said that they never would have given up that information under any circumstances."

Xander looked grim "what can I say, we were persuasive."

Giles realized that the subject of how they were persuaded was either several hours of conversation or none "and what have you learned"? He saw Xander relax minutely and knew he had made the correct choice.

"Well, first of all I don't think we could take this to a court and get a conviction, but it all adds up. It starts with Michael Post, Gwen's little brother and a Colonel in the British Army; he was the one that ordered the hit. Now, here's where it gets interesting; one of Post's best friends is a scientist named Alex Masham, and yes he's from the family of watcher's by that name but the interesting bit is from his mother's side of the family, her maiden name was Walsh."

"You don't mean to say……."

"Yep, Aunt Maggie, and it just so happens that this guy is a bio-engineer. So now we've got two people with ties to the Watchers who know all about what goes bump in the night, and while they're not members they do work at keeping in touch."

"With whom might I ask?"

"Mostly the old guard families; from a few casual interviews he seems to be quite the charmer and with his military training several of those families feel that he would be an excellent candidate for the top spot, should it ever come open."

"I assume you don't mean Prime Minister."

"Sorry Giles, they see him as just the kind of guy to rid the new Council of this 'American Taint' and restore it to what it should be. I imagine that he knew of these feelings and decided to rush your retirement, although you were just the first name on the list."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, from reading between the lines of what he told the Terakans, he was looking to keep them on something like a retainer until anyone that thought about saying 'no' to what he wanted to do was out of the way."

"And what was he afraid people would say 'no' to?"

"Turning the Council into a British version of the Initiative, that was step two."

"How the devil did you come up with that, Walsh's nephew aside?"

"The other two members of their little club also have Watcher connections but they're members of Parliament one works on Military Appropriations and the other on Domestic Science Initiatives. From the projects they were pushing it gets pretty obvious if you know what to look for. That and Dawn ran into a relative of Clem's that was back in the USA because he heard that England was starting up 314."

"Good Lord, you'd think they'd learn from what happened before."

"Come on Giles, they figure they're smarter than the Initiative, and they've got people that are pro's at handling demons right here."

"So you're telling me that they were going to use the Council and Slayers to contain, control and effectively harness the demon population. And they didn't expect them to fight back or anything?"

"God knows what they expected but you've got the essentials and you were the first domino they needed to knock over."

"Indeed, and now that you know who these people are?"

"Now they'll be taken care of."

"You're not going to ……" Giles sat up quickly, wincing as he did so.

"No" Xander quietly replied "I wont kill them, but after I'm done with em they may wish they were dead."

"Do I want to know what you mean by that?"

"Probably not."

"I worry about you my boy, I worry that using that book will change you, and not for the better I fear."

Xander hung his head for a moment; he was touched every time Giles said something like this. The Englishman had made his feelings known on the matter a long time ago, but Xander was still effected every time he said it, hearing someone he considered a parent say they cared about him wasn't something he would ever get used to. "Thanks Giles, but honestly I worry about it enough for the both of us but I've got Faith and Dawn and Oz and all of you guys to keep my head on straight."

"That's good to know, but I'll still worry if that's alright with you?"

"Peachy, now not to change the subject but have you considered having something in place that clearly spells out the succession in case something does happen to you?"

"I have, but that reminded me too much of the old Council's cronyism and I didn't want to do that."

"Cool, but you might want to think about changing things a bit so we don't have to worry about some ambitious jerk pulling an end run."

"Indeed" Giles said with a sigh "I should speak to the council's solicitor and see what my options are, maybe give the slayer's equal say or something like that" his gaze drifted for a moment.

"Sounds good, and now that we've got the small stuff out of the way, let's talk about your problem."

Giles fixed Xander with a glare "You mean that some wanker trying to kill me so he can take over the council and turn it into an imitation of some Yank disaster isn't a problem?"

"Nope, just an inconvenience that will soon be dealt with."

"Very well then, what's my problem?"

"You're still way short of watchers."

"True, but we're recruiting and training as fast as we can; I don't see how you could speed that up and I refuse to put unprepared watchers in the field."

"I only have one disagreement with what you just said."

"And that is?"

"You said that you were recruiting as fast as you could."

"We are, unfortunately it's not something you can just run and ad for in the Times. There aren't many people out there who know about the other world and even fewer who choose to aid our cause."

"You're right there aren't that many people" he said, putting undue emphasis on the last word.

"What do you..." Giles started, then he fell silent thinking about what Xander had just said, then his eyes got huge and he looked at Xander as though he thought the younger man was insane "you can't be serious".

"I'm completely serious."

"But to have demons, the very things we are meant to destroy as watchers; that's ludicrous."

"But are we really out to get rid of all demons, what about the peaceful ones like the Brachen's the Squalmous or the K'Pfastead; we rarely deal with them because they just want to exist like everything else. For that matter how do we know that all demons are soulless; I mean some can interbreed with humans so what about them? You see; if you open it up a little then you can recruit from a population that is already half trained, they're faster and stronger than humans and are already pretty sharp on the demonic species. Heck I know that some are even magic resistant."

"All good points, now tell me why."

"Huh?"

"Why are you advocating this move, what's the reason?"

"I gotta have a reason past doing a better job of keeping slayers alive?"

Giles just intensified his glare "Xanderrrr".

"All right all right, no need to get Ripper out of retirement" the young man sighed. "Sometime in the not too distant future the oblivious human race will stop being so oblivious and when that happens they're gonna declare open war on anything that isn't human."

"Most likely."

"But don't you see, by doing that they'll force the tribes and clans that would be inclined to stay neutral or possibly allies into becoming enemies and fighting even though the might not want to. If you start recruiting from these clans you'll have better intelligence on alliances and species weaknesses and that kind of thing and you'll also be sending a message that those groups are under the protection of the Council. By doing that you'll have a lot more people standing with you when the shit hits the fan and a better chance of still being standing when it's all over.

"So you're out to save the Council?"

"No, my aims a bit higher than that."

Giles just looked at him for a second, thinking about what had been said and what had been implied; it took him a moment but eventually all the pieces fell together. "Might I ask what other measures you've taken?"

Xander blushed "OK, but this might take a while."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

LATER THAT EVENING

"So'd ya give Jeeves the whole picture?"

"Yeah, he's gonna look at it and see if there's anything else we need to deal with, maybe another angle to consider."

"Cool, so now that we know who these jerks are, what are we gonna do about it?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I've got an idea or two."

"The kind of ideas that'll make B and Red loose their lunch?"

"I'm thinking more on the level of something that would make D'Hoffryn envious."

Faith rolled over and looked at her fiancé for a second "these bastards tried to kill the closest thing to real parent I've ever had; nothing you do to em will be enough."

Xander put his arms around the young woman "I know Faith, but I'm gonna give it on heck of a try."


	14. What I Did on My Summer Vacation Pt 3

A/N Well, here it is, my very last chapter; at least in this story. I have decided to quite while I'm ahead because other projects keep nipping at my brain (such as it is). I will be posting a time line for later events in this story and if you wish to indulge yourselves in this little AU I've created, well feel free. As always I would like to thank everyone who has read, reviewed or otherwise enjoyed my story, I cannot express how much your support means to me. So thank you all and enjoy the final installment of this story.

POE1911

WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION PT. 3

East Finchly Cemetery in London is a bit of a mystery to its neighbors. It has been there for as long as any of them can remember or as long as any of the families that have been living there for centuries can remember. The grounds are beautiful and immaculately kept and walkers aren't discouraged, but no one who lives there knows anyone that has been buried there. The reason for that is simple, however it is one that the locals aren't aware of; the East Finchly Cemetery is exclusively for Watchers and Slayers. Although it must be admitted that in most cases there really isn't a lot of the Slayer left to bury, in that case the name of the poor girl is carved into one of the many obelisks that exists for that very purpose. Occasionally the Cemetery will be busy, but relatively speaking there weren't that many funerals held there. This therefore was an exception to the rule. Stereotypically you expect the day of a funeral to be gloomy and overcast and in England you can usually count on rain, so perhaps it was a natural homage to Andrew's contrary nature that saw the day of his funeral dawn warm and clear.

Xander, with Faith by his side, followed the procession out to where Andrew was to be buried. He had asked for, or rather demanded the opportunity to say the eulogy. He hadn't really ever given Andrew or his situation much thought but as he did he realized the injustice that had been done to the young man, injustice perpetrated by the people he was working to help. Xander actually blamed himself, if anyone should have recognized what Andrew was going through it should have been him. But he hadn't and no one else in the upper echelons had ever given the young man much thought. Well he couldn't do anything about that now, but he was going to try and open up everyone's eyes to just what they'd had in Andrew. Xander looked over to where Giles was being pushed in a wheelchair by an anxious Buffy, who really wasn't comfortable with him being out in the open despite the arrangement with the Order of Teraka. The older man had a look of deep thought on his face, whether it was over Andrew or what Xander had told him, he wasn't sure.

They gathered at the gravesite with Father Calworth performing the service; then he motioned for Xander to say the eulogy. As he stepped up, Xander remembered all of the times that he had done this before; too many times. He'd said his first at Jesse's funeral and since then had given eulogies for slayers, watchers and others who had helped out, but he knew that this one would be bad. It would be bad because he felt like he'd failed someone. Ever since Sunnydale he had known that Andrew was struggling to find his place, something that Xander was all too familiar with. He had dropped the younger man a line every now and again, but he hadn't really sat down and talked to Andrew about how hard it was to be the normal guy around all the superheroes; Xander more than most knew what that was like, but he hadn't had that talk and now it was too late.

He looked over the crowd of slayers and watchers and cleared his throat. "More than anything else, I feel sorry for Andrew Wells, not because he is dead, but because of the way he lived his life these later years. Like all of us, Andrew had things in his past that he needed to atone for; however he had become convinced that what he needed to do was perform one great act of atonement. I would like to have talked to him and told him what I had to find out the hard way; that atonement isn't giving your life for something or someone, it is living every day determined to do better than the day before. Atonement isn't one huge act, but millions of little acts. I doubt that he was even aware of all that he did, or how much he contributed or how many lives he touched. What I do know is that he was always there when he was needed and he was always doing his best. Every slayer that came through London in the last few years was helped in some way by Andrew and it is the girls that he loved that will suffer the most upon his passing. And while Andrew's last act was one of heroism and selflessness, I am sure that he will be remembered for so much more than this one thing. Now we must pick up the burden that Andrew's passing has placed upon us and we must uphold the daunting standards that he has set. Through his actions over the years, Andrew Wells not only saved Giles, he has saved thousands of others by supporting and helping the slayers in training and in the field and I cannot imagine a more fitting tribute or memorial." Maintaining control with iron discipline, Xander rejoined the crowd as the service finished up and Andrew's coffin was lowered into the ground. Several people paid their respects as the funeral broke up, as for Xander, he and Faith went for a bit of a walk through the cemetery; neither of them spoke, somehow they didn't need to. As they got back to the cars, they were surprised to find Giles and a very anxious Buffy and Alistair waiting for them.

"What's the what guys?"

"Xander, I just wanted to thank you for what you did today."

"Thanks Giles, I felt like I failed the kid and I just wanted to apologize to him for not being there."

"Nonsense my boy, I was there and I didn't see what you did from a continent away" Giles paused "no I am the one that failed Andrew, if any of us truly did."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, for us to have completely failed, then Andrew would have never found his way and never contributed as much as he did. I'd like to think that we inspired him instead of directing him; now while I will acknowledge that we took the young man for granted, I believe that we did not fail him." Giles leaned forward with a bit of a grin "sometimes you just have to let people find things out for themselves."

Xander smiled at the older man "thanks for the advice, now let's get you back to that nice safe hospital."

Al got in the driver's seat and Buffy folded up the wheelchair, while they were doing this Xander and Faith were helping Giles into the back of the car "back to the hospital" Giles muttered and turned to Xander "you really are a right vicious bastard, you do know that, right?"

"Yep, and I learned from the best" he smirked as the door closed and the car sped off.

Faith looked up at him "what was the deal with what Jeeves told ya?"

"He was just telling me to take it easy about the whole disclosure thing; that it would happen in its own time so I shouldn't be pushing so much."

Faith glanced in the direction the car had taken "smart old guy."

"He is that" Xander agreed and together they just stood there for a moment or two and simply enjoyed each other's company.

"So what are ya planning to do to these pricks?"

"Well, I think they've probably got pretty good intel on most of us, but I think we could blind side em with Oz. They're getting their info from their Council connections; Oz is an unknown, at least to them."

"You don't want him to waste em, do ya?"

"No, I wouldn't ask that of him; no, I want him to lure them into a trap."

"So if he's the bait, what's the snare?"

"Do you remember when we were going through that one warehouse ………"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Colonel Michael Post knew that something was wrong; the problem was he wasn't exactly sure what was. He knew that the first assassin had failed and that Rupert Giles still lived but he didn't know how many more were being sent, he knew that one of Giles' underlings had sacrificed himself but he didn't know who, he knew that some of the slayers and watchers were looking into who might have arranged the hit but he didn't know if they were onto him or not. He needed better intelligence, but he was hesitant to have those resources he could most easily access, elements of the British Army, exposed to possible capture; because if that happened than any doubt about who was making a move would be dispelled and the conflict would become open and bloody. He sighed and waved in the general direction of his secretary as he walked into his office at Sandhurst. He was on temporary assignment here as a guest instructor in counter terrorism. He closed the door and froze, someone had been in his office; the signs were subtle but he could tell. Post began a thorough examination of his office, mostly looking for bugs and other surveillance devices so it's understandable that he didn't see the envelope sitting on his desk until he sat down. He studied it with the same care that he had just used checking his office then he pulled on a pair of surgical gloves and picked up the envelope. For an address, there was only his name and he didn't recognize the hand writing; shrugging, he slit the envelope and a folded piece of paper fell out. Carefully he opened it up and read what was there, then blinking he read it again; it was strange he could read it easily enough, but what it was telling him just didn't make any sense. Finally understanding bloomed in his eyes and immediately he picked up his phone and started dialing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"You sure you're up for this Oz man?"

"To get these guys, I'm up for it."

"If things start going south, you either yell or get the hell out of there."

"I will, you just make sure there aren't any party crashers."

"Deal" Xander said shaking the shorter man's hand.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Sergeant Aylward shot Captain Loring a sharp glance as the two of them watched the four men walk into the warehouse. The sergeant had seen a lot over the years, especially since he'd spent most of his career in the SAS 22nd regiment but he didn't like conducting operations on British soil and he didn't particularly care for Colonel Post either. They'd worked with the colonel before, and each time Aylward felt like they were operating half in the dark, as though there was something else going on that the colonel hadn't seen fit to alert them to. It made for good security, the sergeant admitted, but not knowing everything that was going on made it more likely for Aylward and his platoon to be killed and that was something the sergeant really worked to avoid. The twenty of them as well as Captain Loring had been requested to play bodyguards for the Colonel and three friends; two of whom were members of Parliament, and mount a rescue in the unlikely event that one was needed. "Just the one bloke in there sir?"

"Yes Sergeant; do we know yet how he got in with no one seeing him?"

"No sir, it was the oddest thing, one minute there's nothing and the next there's this guy standing in one of the old offices."

"Do we only have this man on thermals?"

"Yes sir, we're not allowed to get close enough for a look-see, at least that's what the Colonel told us."

"Do you suppose there might be a sewer entrance?"

"It's a possibility sir, and one we haven't covered."

"How about you detail a few of the lads to take a look, we don't want to be caught with our knickers down now do we Sergeant?"

"No sir, I'll get right on that." The men were stationed in groups of four, so the Sergeant contacted two groups that were relatively close to each other and had them detail two of their men each to check out the sewers. He had just finished relaying the orders and was stowing the radio when he heard something, something that he shouldn't have heard. There had been the distinct crunch of gravel as someone had taken a step and since all of his men as well as the Captain were currently visible and motionless, it had to be someone that shouldn't be there. Very deliberately he started towards where the Captain was standing while his had dropped surreptitiously down to the Browning HP on his hip.

Captain Loring was no happier with the situation than his Sergeant, but unfortunately orders were orders and these orders came from well above the Colonel. He studied the building they were guarding closely and he wondered what all the fuss was about. He heard the Sergeant finish relaying the orders and turned to ask him about the possibility of tightening their perimeter when he noticed the look on the man's face. He knew Aylward was a long timer and respected the Sergeant's instincts and abilities and he had never seen the man panicked; that is until now. He desperately wanted to shout out and ask the man what the situation was, but the only thing that came to mind was that they'd been infiltrated and the only thing they could do was remain as passive as possible until they could spread the word to the men and plan a counterattack. The Sergeant was still several feet away when he saw what appeared to be a stream of blue fire stab out to the surrounding darkness and hit Sergeant Aylward in the back. The Sergeant froze a grimace of pain on his face then he fell bonelessly to the ground, his limbs spasming uncontrollably. Before the Captain or any of the men standing with him could react, more beams appeared, hitting the five men standing there. Captain Loring felt his muscles seize up as he completely lost control of his body; then they went slack and he collapsed to the rooftop he was currently standing on, but he didn't lose consciousness. Idly he realized that they'd been hit with some sort of tazer type weapon as he tried to get his hand to move so he could activate his radio and warn the rest of the men; but right now his body just wasn't listening. He was still aware enough to hear the sounds of more weapons being fired some distance away, and the bitter feeling of being caught in an ambush surged through him. Then he noticed a rather striking young woman carrying a vaguely futuristic rifle walking towards him. He tried to ask her name or why she was doing this or beg for the life of his men, but even his jaw muscles were not at his command.

Had the Captain been familiar with the Initiative, he would have recognized the rifle as being closely akin to what Riley Finn and his men carried for capturing demons. In a way it was ironic, the weapon for capturing demons became; with a few of Andrew's modifications, the perfect weapon for slayers who had to deal with humans. It was rugged, effective and, most importantly, non-lethal.

The Captain watched helplessly as the young woman knelt down next to him and checked his pulse then smiled at him, pulled back her right hand and proceeded to punch the captain right on the chin. Needless to say but the Captain's world went black.

Natalia Serenova looked around and smiled, all targets were neutralized, no casualties with her forces and the word hadn't gotten out; most importantly though, she had gotten a measure of revenge for her father. Serenova the elder had been a Major in both the Soviet and Russian armies. When relations had normalized with England, he had been sent over here with his family to learn all he could about the training, tactics and weapons used by the British Army. Sadly, the British hadn't been the best of hosts and their hospitality severely lacking, in her opinion, especially when the utilized his imperfect grasp of English to insult him, his country and his family. Some of the things that they'd said still burned in her memory, because while her father's grasp of English was iffy at best, hers was nearly letter perfect although at times it had been difficult to not let on that she understood exactly what they were saying. All in all it had made punching the English officer very satisfying. "Report" she husked out to her second.

"Seventeen down" the girl, a Pakistani, replied "no casualties and no one got the word out. There is a group of four that headed into the sewers before we were able to move but according to the plans we have there is no sewer access to the warehouse."

"Excellent, figure out which exits are the most likely for them to use and detail three girls to watch each one; with no building access we don't need to be going in after them."

"Sounds good to me, I hate tromping around in the damned things."

"You and me both, now take care of that while I call in our status." She picked up her radio "Sparrow to base, all party crashers are neutralized, no casualties."

"Excellent Sparrow, just keep an eye on the building and report anything unusual; Base out."

As she stowed her radio, Natalia was wondering what was going on in that building.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Without a glance at his three companions, Michael Post warily stepped forward into the well lit warehouse. In the main area he could see four chairs that were facing some odd looking equipment and a man with vibrantly red hair making what looked to be last minute adjustments to the equipment. As far as he was concerned, the most important part was the fact that due to the good lighting, there were no shadows, and therefore no surprises; but just to be sure, he drew a pistol. He heard his three companions match his actions as the man adjusting the machinery called out "have a seat gentlemen, I'll be right with you." Either he was unaware of the guns pointed at him or unconcerned; either way he was effectively covered so Michael and his friends sat down. Finally satisfied with whatever adjustments he'd made they watched as he flipped a few switches and adjusted a couple of knobs then turned to face his audience. "Hello gentlemen, my name is Daniel Osbourne and I have something I know you'll be interested in."

The more Michael saw, the more he realized what an interesting man this Dr. Osbourne was. He was slight but muscular, his hair was obviously dyed its current color and he was wearing some rather effeminate tinted glasses; but there was something else, an underlying violence about him, as though what they were seeing was only a façade and the real Daniel Osbourne was assessing the threat before making his appearance. The guns wavered a bit but they weren't put away.

"I want to speak to you about perception" he began "currently there is a huge search for the so called 'dark matter'; matter that should exist but cannot be found. In order to do this they have created huge telescopes and elegant theories which so far have turned up nothing. I believe that the problem is one of perception. If you think about it, our senses are insanely limited, we see only a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum, our hearing is across a similarly narrow range and the less said about our sense of smell the better. I am convinced that the missing matter from creation is all around us but we simply cannot perceive it. So the problem becomes one of human limitations rather than an elaborate seek and find. So how do we exceed our limitations, well that is the question I set myself to answering and my conclusions are rather remarkable. You see it isn't a matter of expanding our senses, but rather of waking up those senses that we already possess but are dormant. I'm not sure if you gentlemen are familiar with the Pineal Gland or not so I will begin with the basics." Here Osbourne went into a long discourse on endocrinology that was rather interesting until Alex Masham interrupted him.

"Now I know who you are, you were in Sunnydale and worked with the slayers" he looked around wild eyed "this is a trap".

"Very good" Oz replied in a very different voice from the one he'd been using "I was wondering how long it would take you to figure it out." He saw the men try and move so he said "don't try and get up, you can't. You see the chairs you're sitting in are coated with a contact poison that totally inhibits the voluntary muscles, so you're here until someone moves you."

Now all four looked a bit panicked but still felt they were in control, after all they had a platoon of SAS looking out for them.

"Oh, if you're expecting the cavalry to come and save you, or more specifically the SAS, well lets just say that we gave them the night off."

"So what are you going to do to us" Masham asked.

"Nothing"

"What do you mean; nothing."

"Just what I said, I'm not going to touch you in any way and no one else will either."

"So just let us go."

"It's not time yet."

"So what is this, blackmail" Edward Felton asked, speaking for the first time.

"No, this is removing a problem."

"And how exactly is that going to happen if you're not going to kill us" Post asked.

"What I told you about the Pineal Gland is true, and as of right now yours have been stimulated by this machine for almost an hour so pretty soon you'll start to notice. A thousand different senses will come to life and you'll be able to hear beyond human range and see in more spectra than you can imagine."

"And how will that remove us" Felton asked nervously.

"Well, you see" Oz began "you'll begin to see and hear creatures as well as structures, creatures that exist on this plane of existence but you simply cannot perceive them, yet."

"So"

"Well let's just say their aesthetics are really different and leave it at that. Then there's the other situation."

"And what situation is that?"

"Once you're able to see them, they're able to see you, and not all of them are exactly benign" Oz said, with a bit of a smirk.

The four men tried to struggle, but the contact poison had done its job and they were unable to move an inch, despite the fact that they were completely unbound. Giving up his struggle Felton looked at Oz and asked "so how are you immune to all this?"

"He's a werewolf" Masham answered "I would suppose that the condition is protecting him."

Oz turned his placid gaze to Felton "what he said" the young man added; then he went back to looking at his watch. He could feel the tension mounting in the four prisoners but he couldn't find it in himself to feel sorry for them. They had sown the wind and were now reaping the whirlwind. Surprisingly it was Post that was the first to crack.

"There are things, flobbery pink things everywhere" he shrieked out "God, they're drifting right through me" he began to giggle hysterically. Soon the others were noting sounds and shapes and smells that were beyond anything they'd ever experienced and it was obvious to Oz that it was overloading their minds. Then as new and different creatures and things were spotted their voices became more and more shrill, their words wilder and slurred until all they could do was scream. Dispassionately, Oz stood and walked into one of the offices, light flared and the four were alone, in a way.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah babe, but I never want to go through anything like that again."

"I know but thank you for doing this."

"I was the only one that could."

"Maybe, but thanks anyway" she said with a kiss.

He kissed her back, but it was clear that his heart really wasn't in it.

"Is there anything I can do" she asked, a worried look on her face.

"Just hold me" he replied.

She noticed the bleak look in his eyes so she just nodded and pulled him into her arms and comforted him as best she could.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Michael Post wasn't sure of very much; he wasn't sure where he was, half the time he wasn't sure who he was, he wasn't sure if what he was seeing was real or not. Pretty much the only thing he was sure about was that he wanted it to stop. During one of his few lucid periods he realized that he still held his gun, now maybe it was all the adrenalin screaming through his body, or maybe the poison was wearing out, but for whatever reason he was able to get a few muscles to work. A shot rang out in the warehouse and machinery exploded; now Michael wasn't sure if the flames were real or not, but really he didn't much care.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

_LONDON TIMES_

_Rescue workers found a bizarre scene yesterday as they answered a fire call from the Docklands area. As they went to take care of a warehouse fire they were surprised to find four men in the structure. Despite their best efforts, two of the men later died while the other two are undergoing tests. The two dead were Colonel Michael Post, currently an instructor at Sandhurst and MP William Davies. Alexander Masham, a brilliant genetecist and MP William Felton are currently hospitalized but authorities are hopeful that they can aid their enquiries into the situation._

Xander put down the paper with a cold smile; somehow he doubted that the two survivors would ever be able to shed any light on much of anything for the rest of their lives.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Two Weeks Later

"So how does it feel to be back in your office G-Man?"

"It would feel much better if there was just a bit less paperwork to catch up on, but otherwise it feels quite good." Giles looked a bit pensive for a moment then asked "have you been sleeping well lately?"

Xander looked at the man and knew where the question was coming from "yeah, I've been sleeping OK Giles, thanks for asking."

"Doesn't it bother you?"

"Some, yeah, but it's what I do Giles, it's what I've done since I found out what the world is really like. I do the stuff that needs to be done, I'm not the great heroic figure, I'm the guy that makes the hero's job just a little easier. Now if that means I've got to take out the trash now and again, well then that's what I do and if it starts to get to me then I think about Buffy or Faith or Wills or Dawnie and the fact that they don't have to add that to their list of things they're sorry for. And maybe I overly simplify the whole thing but the way I figure it is I'm on this rock to make their lives better so I'm prepared to do whatever I can to make that happen."

Giles looked at the young man for a moment or two "whatever you may think Xander, I believe that you are indeed a heroic figure; maybe not as pure as the wind driven snow, but then who of us is."

Xander smirked at the old Watcher "well it's your first day back so I'll indulge your illusions."

"Thank you so much" Giles snarked right back "but now that I'm indeed back, what will you be doing?"

"Well I was planning on taking this really hot girl to a baseball game, and then sit back and think about some advice I got from this cranky old Brit."

Giles looked both pleased and surprised at the same time "well since you're finally listening to my advice ……"

"Don't push it Giles, I'm sure its just a one time thing."

"Very well, but if you would indulge an old man."

"You'll never be old."

"My knees beg to differ, but regardless, if you would let me I would like to pass on two things that it has taken me some time to learn; the first is always make sure that those you care about know your feelings, life is too short and number two is to be sure to have some fun in your life. After all you have already proven that saving the world is a much easier proposition when you're laughing."

Xander chuckled as he stood and shook the older man's hand "thanks Giles, and who knows, if this works out I might start listening to you more often."

"God forbid, I don't know if I could deal with the lot of you actually listening to me."

"Hey, I might start a new fad" Xander replied, then sobered "take care of yourself Giles, I don't want to have to deal with you being gone for some time."

"I'll do my best, now run along and let me get some of this blasted paperwork done" Giles said as the young man faded from view in mid laugh.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Xander's office was empty when he returned. Quietly he headed down the hall to see who was in. When he saw them; they were in Faith's office, he froze. It was a perfect tableaux he wished that there was some way he could freeze in time so it would be with him always; Dawn was talking a mile a minute and animatedly waving her arms around, Faith was roaring laughter at the younger woman's antics and Oz sat there watching the two with just the hint of a smile at the corners of his mouth. They were his friends, his colleagues and his family; at least in every way that really counted. He knew that there were good time, bad times, joys and trials and tragedies ahead but he wasn't going to dwell on it; that was just the way life was. Smiling he stood there just a minute more, watching; not wanting to break the spell.

PS The bit about the machine expanding the senses came from the Lovecraft story "From Beyond", something that I certainly do not own the rights to; just like BTVS and any other bits and peices that show up from other people's works. I do own the rights to an old Basset hound and a cranky Subaru but that's all.


	15. Ends and Beginnings

A/N It would be pointless to go through all of the different ways I tried to end this story, suffice it to say that there were a lot of attempts, but none of them seemed to fit; until now. I would like to take this last time to thank all of the people that have read, reviewed and enjoyed my story, your praise means a lot to me. It goes without saying that I have no proprietary rights to BTVS or the works of HP Lovecraft, yet for some reason I'm supposed to say it. Anyway, the story is now complete and I hope you like the way I ended it.

POE1911

_Aunt Dawn:_

_I'd expect that right now you're torn between being relieved and being angry; just a suggestion but I'd stick with angry if I were you. It'll save time when you've finished this letter. Oh, before I really get started could you pull Aunt Willow back from Def Con 1 as well as T'mara's clan; I imagine things are a bit strained at the moment. Now, I imagine you're asking yourself 'Why did they leave and mail a letter rather than leave a note?'. Well the answer is real simple; as cliché as it sounds, by the time you get this it'll be too late to stop us. And before you and T'veron freak out, we're not eloping or anything like that. Actually we're doing something a lot more bone-headed than that; we've gone to look for Mom and Dad. Before you start ranting; I'm doing this because I KNOW that Dad is alive and T'mara is here because she loves me and wouldn't let me go alone. Now as to how I know Dad is alive even though Aunt Willow couldn't locate him, well I tried to claim the chair and failed. Now I remember what you and Mom and Aunt Willow all said about going near that thing but I figured that since it imparts the knowledge from all the previous holders then there might be something in Dad's memories that would tell me what happened; so I tried to claim it. But I couldn't, and let me tell you that was a shock, but I researched a bit and found that there can only be one claimant at any time, so it's Dad's chair until he dies and no one else's. So I knew that Dad was alive somewhere and if Dad was alive then it was a safe bet that Mom was too because I couldn't see either one of them allowing themselves to survive the loss of the other. The problem I had was where they could be and as you know; all I found was dead ends. That is up until a year ago. I was looking through Mom's desk for something when apparently I tripped a hidden panel. I heard a click and suddenly there was a drawer where there hadn't been one before. Well I opened it up and there was a box in there, a very ornate wooden box. Well I pulled it out and gave it a check with all the diagnostic spells I knew and then checked it for more conventional booby traps and when it came up clean, I opened it. Inside was an elaborate silver key and the spots for two others that weren't there. I had no idea what the key opened or anything else about it at the time so I ignored it for a while. I did a little research when I had the time but it wasn't exactly on my front burner. Then, about two months ago, I showed the key to T'mara. She got kinda strange when she saw it and left soon afterwards, it was clear to me that it had triggered a memory in her. The next day she told me about a legend that is passed around in the demon clans of the 'Gate of the Silver Keys'. According to their legends, it is a dimensional gate that doesn't lead to a specific place, but rather that place in the multiverse where we most want to be. For example, you might stand in front and choose to go to a dimension where Dad married you and not Mom, then when you opened the gate, that was where you would be. It isn't clear what happens if you die in the alternate dimension, some versions have you wake up outside the gate again, others have you appear on your original plane of existence and still others say that if you die there then you die in actuality. The problem was, we knew what we were looking for, but we had no idea where it was, the legends didn't say. So it was back to research mode for quite some time. Long story short, we found some references that told us that the gate exists in what we normally think of as our dream state. To get there you had to put yourself into another level, a deeper level of dreaming than we usually achieve. Kind of like the concept of 'effective dreaming' that was in that story 'Lathe of Heaven'; once you achieve that level, you can find the gate. We believe that is why Aunt Willow can't locate Mom and Dad, because the plane they are on is not just dependent on an alternate universe, but also on a different state of mind. After finding this out we tried to achieve this dreaming level, it wasn't easy but after a while it happened; first to T'mara and then to me. We achieved the necessary dream state and after a bit of exploring, found the gate. It's beautiful Aunt Dawn, I'd try to describe it but somehow words just don't do it justice. T'mara tried to sketch it out for you, hopefully it gives you some idea of how it appears. So now that we can get there, we're going to go through tomorrow. I know you don't want me doing this, but I really believe it's something I need to do. And I know it's a long shot, but the family has had longer shots pay off in the past. The last thing I'll say is 'don't worry' we'll be back. How do I know? I know because there are just too many darned prophecies about me that haven't occurred yet and since I've got to be here to fulfill them, it is only logical that I will come back to do so. So I won't say goodbye, but rather 'see ya later'_

_Your Nephew_

_Jesse Harris_

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Dawn Summers glanced at the letter again; it had been six months since she'd received it. At first she had blamed T'mara for leading Jesse off on a wild goose chase but conversations with both Willow and T'veron (T'mara's father) had convinced her that no one was really to blame or everyone was, take your pick. Actually it was saying something that she could now look at the letter without bursting into tears; maybe she was finally growing up. In the midst of her thoughts, Dawn glanced at the clock and noticed that she was meeting Oz in ten minutes for lunch. She got up and made it as far as the door when the phone rang. She paused for a moment, then leaned over her desk and checked the caller ID. Seeing the number she did a classic double take, and then emitting a squeal that didn't seem right coming out of a fortysomething year old woman, she picked up the phone and started babbling.


End file.
